Former political prisoners denounce double standards in jail for plunderers, political prisoners
KARAPATAN Public Information
PRESS RELEASE
26 January 2026
Reference: Danilo dela Fuente, SELDA Vice-Chairperson
Former political prisoners denounce double standards in jail for plunderers, political prisoners
The Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainee Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA), an organization of former political prisoners, deplored the VIP (Very Important Person) treatment being extended to those linked to the infrastructure corruption scandal as a "stark example of double standards in the Philippine justice system."
“Those who are accused of misusing and stealing hundreds of millions of pesos of the people’s money are being detained in the relatively new and spacious Quezon City Jail Male Dormitory in Payatas, Quezon City,” fumed Danilo dela Fuente, vice chair of SELDA. “In contrast, ordinary detainees as well as political prisoners who are already unjustly behind bars on trumped-up charges suffer the added injustice of being held in severely congested jail cells with poor ventilation and inadequate access to clean water and sanitation facilities.”
“It is infuriating that those who have pocketed public monies that could have been used for urgently needed social services for our people are being treated with kid gloves, while other detainees, including activists who have served poor and marginalized sectors, are made to endure the typically hellish conditions in the country’s overcrowded jails,” he added.
This VIP treatment for the corrupt, said Dela Fuente, is one more reason why we find Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s so-called anti-corruption crusade dubious. “He loathes to go all the way against the corrupt because doing so will inevitably lead to no other than himself and members of his clique,” concluded Dela Fuente.
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