Faeldon is ‘happy’ to be in an overcrowded jail, official says

An official said on Wednesday that former Customs commissioner and now deputy administrator of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Nicanor Faeldon is “happier” to be placed in a tightly-packed jail cell compared to when he was still in the Senate detention cell. (Photo: Senate of the Philippines/Facebook)

An official said on Wednesday that former Customs commissioner and now deputy administrator of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Nicanor Faeldon is “happier” to be placed in a tightly-packed jail cell compared to when he was still in the Senate detention cell.

The former Customs commissioner has been detained since September 2017 for constantly refusing to appear in the Senate probe into the alleged smuggling of the P6.4 billion worth of shabu shipment from China in May.

Faeldon was transferred to the Pasay City jail on Tuesday, after he finally showed up in the hearing only to have heated arguments with Senator Richard Gordon, chairman of the Blue Ribbon Committee.

“Ang sabi sa atin ni [former] commissioner Faeldon (The [former] commissioner told us), ‘I am okay here. I am happy with my own kind kaysa naman andoon ako sa Senate (than when I was still in the Senate),'” Senior Inspector Xavier Solda, spokesperson of the penology bureau, was quoted as saying in a DZMM report.

“Parang nalulungkot daw po siya doon dahil pag-alis ng bisita niya, matutulog na lang siya. Kinabukasan na ulit siya may kausap (He said he felt lonely in his cell before because after his visitor leaves, he’ll just sleep. He would have someone to talk to him again the next day),” Solda added.

According to the spokesman, Faeldon now shares a jail cell with 108 other inmates, which only has one electric fan for cooling. The former Customs commissioner will now use a rubber mat for a bed and that he has a daily state budget of P60 for food.

Faeldon’s situation in the Pasay City jail is far different from his detention cell in the Senate building where his room is fully air-conditioned and has no bars.

Solda added that Faeldon willingly agreed to wear a yellow shirt with a logo of BJMP as uniform of inmates, stressing that he has no objection to the rules and was “very cooperative.”

The official said that jail officers will not give Faeldon any special treatment but may do some minor adjustments so he can still play the role of deputy administrator of the OCD while he is inside the cell.

The spokesperson explained that the Senate would decide if there’s any possible transfer of Faeldon to other detention.