Retired PNP official named BuCor chief

MANILA, Philippines - Retired police general Franklin Jesus Bucayu has been appointed as the new director of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), Justice Secretary Leila de Lima announced yesterday.

Bucayu takes the place of retired lieutenant general Gaudencio Pangilinan Jr., who resigned last December following several controversies in the bureau last year.

In a statement, De Lima said Bucayu is very well qualified for the post, considering his 35 years in police and military services and track record in security institutions and extensive experience spanning several disciplines.

“The appointment of a former chief of the PNP’s Human Rights Affairs Office (HRAO) is a paradigm shift in the management of our prisons. It is time to move forward with the major reforms in the premiere correctional institute of the country,” she said.

Bucayu assumes the post temporarily designated to National Bureau of Investigation deputy director Rafael Marcos Ragos.  The BuCor is under administrative supervision of the Department of Justice.

Prior to resigning, Pangilinan went on indefinite leave for four months following the abduction of prominent murder convict Rolito Go inside the New Bilibid Prison in August last year.

Pangilinan was appointed by President Aquino in June 2011 to replace Ernesto Diokno, who was removed from the post after the unauthorized trip of former Batangas governor and convicted killer Antonio Leviste from the national penitentiary in May last year.