ANALYSIS: Rights of Persons Arrested / Accused 41 Under the 1987 Constitution, an accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy, impartial, and public trial. 195 Republic Act No. 8493 or the Speedy Trial Act of 1998 provides statutory support to this right. 196 Moreover, [a]ll persons, except those charged with offenses punishable by reclusion perpetua when evidence of guilt is strong shall, before conviction, be bailable by sufficient sureties, or be released on recognizance as may be provided by law. The right to bail shall not be impaired even when the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is suspended. Excessive bail shall not be required. 197 The research revealed that due to the delay in the issuance of commitment orders from the courts, detainees in lock-up cells are not immediately transferred to regular jails administered by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP). This predicament is shared in common by majority of the police districts as detainees interviewed in the following police stations all had the same lament. 198 In one instance, a detainee spent almost two (2) years in a lock-up cell and was not turned over to a BJMP facility notwithstanding a request from the court. 199 E. Right to Educational, Cultural and Informational Materials The Body of Principles provides that “[a] detained person or imprisoned person shall have the right to obtain within the limits of available resources, if from public sources, reasonable quantities of educational, cultural and informational material, subject to reasonable conditions to ensure security and good order in the place of detention or imprisonment.” 200 As mentioned earlier, it was observed that some police stations allow their detainees to watch television newscast. While this is so, no other means of informational or educational materials were seen available to or accessible by detainees in police lock-up cells. Under the situation, the right to self-development apparently ceases once a person is placed in a temporary lock-up cell, which should not be the case. Even one who is convicted and serving sentence in accordance with law pursuant to the judgment of a competent court is entitled to such right, though limited, as this is in line with the objectives of rehabilitating convicts under the criminal justice system. 195 CONST., Article III, Section 14 (2). The Rules of Criminal Procedure has similar provision under Rule 115, Section 1 (h). 196 Republic Act No. 8493, or An Act To Ensure A Speedy Trial Of All Criminal Cases Before The Sandiganbayan, Regional Trial Court, Metropolitan Trial Court, Municipal Trial Court, And Municipal Circuit Trial Court, Appropriating Funds Therefor, And For Other Purposes. 197 CONST., Article III, Section 13 vis-à-vis Republic Act No. 10389 or the Recognizance Act of 2012. 198 Marikina PCP 1; QCPD – PS-3; QCPD – PS12 (Eastwood); QCPD-DAID; NPD-DSOU; Malabon PS2; Caloocan PCP-3 (former Sub-Station 3); Taguig City PS; Pasay City PS-SOU/SAID and MPD-PS1 Raxabago. 199 SPD-Taguig City PS. 200 Principle 28, Body of Principles.