ILOILO City – The Iloilo City District Jail-Male Dormitory in Barangay Ungka II, Jaro district is the first jail in Western Visayas to earn the Safety Seal award from the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) under the latter’s Safety Seal Certification Program (SSCP).
Jail Superintendent Mary Chanette Espartero, the jail warden who received the award, said the Safety Seal was an honor.
“It is not easy to have this certificate. All our programs concerning how to contain coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the jail were validated,” Espartero said. “As of now we have no inmates infected by the virus because we are so strict.”
Among the jail’s programs were the establishment of isolation cells and hand-washing stations; strict enforcement of wearing of facemasks and face shields; swabbing of incoming duty personnel to ensure that they are COVID-free; thorough disinfection of the prison facility; and conduct of lectures to the inmates on COVID-19.
Visitations were also temporarily halted.
“Todo kayod man kita na wala sang ma-infect na inmates and our personnel. I’m so thankful sa cooperation sang aton personnel and inmates,” Espartero said.
This certification was in compliance to the guidelines and indicators stipulated in the DILG-Memorandum Circular No. 2021-053 dated May 12, 2021.
“Rest assured the Iloilo City District Jail-Male Dormitory shall continue to be vigilant in enforcing these protocols,” Espartero said./PN
