Kapatid bucks ‘VIP treatment’ for Bong Revilla

Political prisoner support group Kapatid called on the government to transfer former senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. to an ordinary jail cell and to refrain from granting him what it called “VIP treatment.”

In a statement on Wednesday, Kapatid said Revilla’s current detention arrangement sends a “dangerous signal” that the law “bends for the powerful.”

Earlier, the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) said Revilla would be housed in a 47-square-meter facility designed for 10 detainees, with its own toilet and bathroom.

While the BJMP maintained that Revilla was not receiving special treatment, Kapatid contrasted his detention situation with what it described as the “overcrowded and inhumane” conditions endured by other persons deprived of liberty (PDLs).

“Revilla’s detention quarters constitute VIP—Very Important Prisoner—treatment in a sea of suffering. This is detention by privilege, not by law," Kapatid spokesperson Fides Lim said.

"The corrupt are literally cushioned, even provided with mattresses, while the poor and political prisoners endure overcrowded jails in the most inhumane conditions,” she added.

Kapatid reiterated its call for improved conditions for PDLs nationwide, noting that jail congestion in the country exceeds 300 percent, forcing inmates to live in unsanitary conditions and endure unreasonable restrictions on food and water.

The group also said political prisoners and other PDLs are often ignored, denied medical transfers, or cut off from their legal counsel.

Kapatid stressed that assurances alone are not enough to guarantee equal treatment under the law.

“Equal justice means equal conditions. Revilla and other corrupt accused should be held in the same ordinary, congested cells as everyone else," Lim said.

"The fact that they are government officials—and repeat offenders—makes their crimes even worse. They should feel the full weight of the law, not enjoy special treatment,” she added.

Earlier, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla assured the public that no special treatment would be extended to Revilla following his surrender at Camp Crame in Quezon City on Monday.

Revilla is currently under temporary detention at the Quezon City Jail in Payatas and has posted P90,000 bail for his charges.

The former senator is facing malversation charges in connection with a graft case over the alleged P92.8 million ghost flood control project in Pandi, Bulacan.