Hearings into Marawi siege cause, rehabilitation sought

MANILA, Philippines — An opposition senator is seeking a Senate investigation into the status of rehabilitation efforts in the war-ravaged Marawi City and the circumstances that led to the longest military battle in the country’s history.

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV filed Senate Resolutions 742 and 743 as the Philippines on Wednesday marks a year since the siege that destroyed much of Marawi’s central business district and displaced 250,000 of its residents.

“A year after the Marawi siege, the government has yet to present a comprehensive plan on how it intends to rehabilitate the city and assist our kababayans (fellow Filipinos) there,” the senator said.

“Worse, its efforts are hampered by a number of issues, from questionable contractors that would rebuild the city, to displacement or land grabbing fears of the affected residents,” he added.

Panel asked to check rehabilitation

Under Resolution 742, Trillanes is asking the Senate Special Committee on Marawi City Rehabilitation, which was created to monitor the progress of rehabilitation efforts in the town, to probe into the status of reconstruction plans, relief and reconstruction of the city especially the livelihood of the displaced residents.

Under the government’s master plan for Marawi rehabilitation, a total of 892 projects were pledged to be rolled out and completed just before President Rodrigo Duterte steps down from office in 2022.

However, this master plan is yet to be finalized and framed in loose procurement rules and legal shortcuts, according to an analysis by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.
PCIJ said that some of the problems rebuilding efforts faced were loopholes in the guidelines on project contract awarding, on-off and token consultations with affected communities, disjointed work by local and national agencies, unsettled land rights and reparation claims and many others.

An organization of Marawi evacuees also hit the government for its plans to convert the city to a military reserve and an ecozone.

However, Eduardo Del Rosario, the chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, already clarified last month that the suggestion from Philippine Economic Zone Authority chief Jane Plaza to build an economic zone was just an offer and would not be imposed on anyone.

Trillanes is also seeking a congressional probe, through the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security, into the circumstances that led to the battle for Marawi to avoid a similar conflict from arising in the future.

“Months before the siege, the government knew about the impending crisis. Duterte even challanged the Maute group to burn Marawi. Despite this, the government was not able to prevent the conflict,” Trillanes, former military officer, said.

Compensation for displaced sought

Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV meanwhile is seeking monetary compensation for the affected residents of Marawi City who lost their homes and property during the five-month battle.

In his Senate Bill 1816, Aquino said that the remuneration would help the residents to recover from the damage and destruction in their homes and property.

“The residents immediately need help from the government for them to recover and return to their normal lives,” Aquino, a member of the Senate panel on Marawi rehabilitation, said in Filipino.

The battle for Marawi started on May 23, 2017 after Islamic State-inspired militants from the Maute group tried to take over the city and make it the capital of the province of IS in Southeast Asia.

Philippine security personnel and the militants battled for five months, leaving the city in shambles.

According to the National Economic Development Authority, more than P50 billion is needed to rehabilitate the lakeside town. Del Rosario meanwhile gave a highter figure last month, saying that the price tag for the efforts will be at least P72 billion.