By NITZ ARANCON Correspondent MEMBERS of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Misamis Oriental Chapter have expressed alarm over a dozen inmates who have been languishing at the city jail in Lumbia without lawyers to  represent them in court. This was discovered by members of IBP-Misor during their free legal consultation at city jail over the weekend. One of the volunteer lawyers, Ernesto Neri, said his group discovered during the consultation that there are over 15 inmates who have been jailed but do not have lawyers to follow-up their cases in court. One of the inmates is 75-year old Bienvenido Casiño, a resident of Barangay Macabalan. Casiño was arrested in May and subsequently detained at the city jail on drug charges. Casiño has asserted that the police do not have any evidence but he was detained at the city jail just the same because he did not have a lawyer to defend him in court. Neri blamed this on the fire that razed the Hall of Justice in February 2014. “Kay wala na may ilang case record kay na-apil man pagka sunog so wala gyud  maesolve ang ilang mga kaso, hinongdan nga nadugay gyud sila sa pagka-detain dinhi,” Neri explained. The free legal consultation was made possible through the “Hapsay Buhay” program of Mayor Oscar Moreno, also a lawyer by profession. Lawyer Eddie Cuaresma, IBP-Misor president, led at least 20 young volunteer lawyers during the consultation. In an interview, Patrick Gabutina, coordinator of Hapsay Buhay program, said Moreno hoped that through the free legal consultation, the long awaited justice could be served to the inmates. “Ang usa pud sa atong gitingoha ani nga makatabang kita sa pag-decongest sa mga inmate sa  (city jail),” Gabutina told the Gold Star Daily. For his part, the city jail warden, Senior Insp. Mealee Todyog, concurred with Gabutina’s statement that the city jail is congested. Todyog said the city jail was designed for 300 inmates. However, the current population of inmates at the city’s jail is at 2,700. Todyog added that 80 percent of the current population at the city jail have drugelated cases.