‘Pro-criminal’: Crime watchdog slams SC ruling on GCTA for heinous offenders
MANILA, Philippines — Crime watchdog Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) condemned the recent Supreme Court (SC) ruling which allowed prisoners convicted of heinous crimes to avail of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA).
In an interview with ANC on Friday, VACC President Arsenio Evangelista said that the High Court’s ruling is a “bitter-sweet” decision, especially for victims of heinous crimes and called it “pro-criminal and not pro-victims.”
“This milestone decision is a sad decision for all of us victims,” he said.
Evangelista said that the SC's decision was unfair to all victims of heinous crimes, asserting that justice for victims is only served when the perpetrator is convicted.
“Pumayag na nga kami kahit walang death penalty, masyadong unfair sa victims ng heinous crimes,” he said.
(We agreed even without the death penalty, it's too unfair to the victims of heinous crimes.)
The crime watchdog head also fears that the prisoners convicted of heinous crimes may be “not ready for the outside world” even if they have served their sentences.
“The moment na nakalabas sila doon sa commitment centers, they can somehow regroup,...those well organized groups can regroup and threaten us,” he said.
(The moment they are released from the commitment centers, they can somehow regroup... those well-organized groups can regroup and threaten us.)
The High Court’s ruling said that the Department of Justice (DOJ) overstepped its authority in subordinate legislation by excluding individuals convicted of heinous crimes from the advancement of the benefits of the new GCTA law.
Under this law, qualified inmates can avail of GCTA as a reward for good behavior, allowing the reduction of their prison sentence.
Citing Article 97 of the Revised Penal Code, the SC said that any convicted prisoner is entitled to GCTA as long as the prisoner is in any “penal institution, rehabilitation or detention center or any other local jail."
In 2019, the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the law expanded its scope by not allowing recidivists, habitual delinquents, escapees, and individuals convicted of heinous crimes to earn GCTA credits.
However, the SC stated that the GCTA law does not specify this exclusion.
In the same year, the SC ruled that the GCTA law can be retroactively applied, following the doctrine in criminal law that states, "penal laws, when favorable and advantageous to the accused, should be applied retroactively."
The GCTA law previously rocked headlines in 2019 after a supposed pending release of former Calauan Mayor Antonio Sanchez who was convicted of rape with homicide in 1995.
However, former Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra clarified that the former mayor was not qualified for release.
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