ON the occasion of the fourth year commemoration of the “liberation of Marawi” from an extremist siege, a party-list lawmaker on Monday urged Congress to fast-track the promised rehabilitation to the war-torn city through the immediate passage of the Marawi Compensation bill.
Anak Mindanao Party-list Rep. Amihilda Sangcopan, in a news statement, said the passage of the Marawi Compensation bill or House Bill 9925, will help the immediate return of the people to their homes.
The lawmaker said rebuilding the lives of the displaced families should be given utmost importance.
Sangcopan also asked President Duterte to certify as urgent the compensation bill, which has been passed on third and final reading in the House of Representatives.
Lawmakers passed House Bill 9925 to create and institutionalize the Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) to achieve the objectives set in the Marawi Recovery, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Program (MRRRP). The TFBM and its subcommittees shall function until the completion of the MRRRP and the fulfillment of the provisions of this proposal.
The bill also grants private property owners a replacement cost for loss or destruction of property resulting from the MRRRP. The replacement cost shall be based on the current market value of the improvements and structure as determined by the implementing agency, a government financial institution with adequate experience in property appraisal, or an independent property appraiser accredited by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
“One doesn’t have to experience war to identify with the hardships of the people of Marawi. As a member of Congress, we are hoping and praying that the Marawi Compensation Act be legislated and commuted to Malacañang to become a law before the end of the year,” said Sangcopan.
Sangcopan also lauded members of the Senate for the approval at the committee level of the Marawi Compensation bill, a measure calling for the provision of just compensation to the victims of the 2017 siege, including the damage and destruction to their property.
“We wanted the basic principles and guidelines of international human rights and humanitarian laws on the right to remedy and reparation of persons whose rights were violated and whose economic, social and cultural rights were affected by armed conflicts are present,” she said.
The five-month battle destroyed 24 Marawi villages and displaced over a hundred thousand Maranaos. It was also estimated that up to P17 billion worth of property and economic opportunities were lost.
“The people of Marawi all wish to go home. Let us give them the chance to feel the normalcy of life back. A life they used to have four years prior. Let’s all be part in the rise of Marawi to its old or better glory as a City,” said Sangcopan.