Govt planning pardon for sick, elderly inmates before Pope’s visit

The Department of Justice is drawing up a list of inmates who would be recommended to receive executive clemency from President Benigno Aquino III before Pope Francis arrives in the country for a five-day visit a week from now.

Justice Secretary Leila De Lima said she gave the DOJ a "self-imposed" deadline of until Wednesday to submit the list to Malacañang.

 

De Lima refused to divulge how many Bilibid inmates stand a chance to be included on the list, saying the President anyway has the last say who among those on the list would get clemency. Aquino has "plenary and absolute power of executive clemency," she said.

 

"It really depends on the President how many of those recommendees would really be granted executive clemency and what form of executive clemency may be granted to them," said De Lima.

 

De Lima, however, assured the public that elderly inmates and those who are terminally ill would get prioritized by the President.

Aquino has committed to review and approve the list of NBP inmates in time for the papal visit from Jan. 15 to 19. 

This, in light of an appeal from the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines for him to grant clemency to sick, old, and abandoned prisoners.

Implementing rules of Republic Act 4103 or the Indeterminate Sentence Law describe "commutation of sentence" as the reduction of the duration of a prison sentence of a prisoner. 

Meanwhile, "conditional pardon" refers to the exemption of an individual, within certain limits or conditions, from the punishment which the law inflicts for the offense he had committed resulting in the partial extinction of his criminal liability. —NB, GMA News