COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 07 October) A national government fund intended for the rehabilitation of areas affected by the November 2013 super typhoon “Yolanda” will be diverted for rehabilitation of Marawi, Governor Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao told a press conference Friday.
Hataman said the the amount will be used for transitional shelter for Marawi residents displaced by the war “and other infrastructure prospects” with the help of the ARMM’s Public Works and Highways department.
Defense Undersecretary Delfin Lorenza on September 28 told a media seminar on disaster risk reduction and management in Subic, Zambales that the rehabilitation of Marawi City will be partly funded by the money allocated for Yolanda rehabilitation efforts.
He said Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno allocated P5 billion to build temporary shelters, and other priority projects.
Lorenzana in early September told the Senate Special Committee on Marawi City Rehabiilitation that at least P50 billion is needed to fund the rehabilitation of the country’s lone Islamic City.
“Ballpark figure ko lang ‘yung P50 billion. It will cover everything…structure of buildings, either public or prviate,” Lorenzana was quoted by GMA News Online.
“Everything na, infrastructure, roads, bridges, public buildings, plus mga private properties na, if we are going to rebuild private properties,” he added.
Lorenzana, chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and concurrent chair of the Task Force Bangon Marawi, an interaengcy body mandated by President Rodrigo Duterte to take charge of the rehabilitation work in Marawi City, said it will take at least three years, depending on the availability of funds. “Kung magtuloy-tuloy…at kung may pera tayo at resources. Kung matigil tayo, eh ‘di matatagalan” (GMA News Online quoted him as saying.
Hataman also announced the plan of San Miguel Corporation to construct 1,000 subdivision-type temporary shelters and the PAG-IBIG housing project loan for Mindanao State University and government employees of the city.
The Marawi Crisis entered Day 138 on Saturday.
ARMM has spent around 110 million pesos from this year’s calamity fund, frontlining the ARMM-HEART (Humanitarian Emergency Action Response Team), the humanitarian wing of the region which immediately responded to the needs of residents displaced by the war. (Ferdinandh B. Cabrera / MindaNews)