P1B set aside for Marawi payout in 2025 budget

RUINS In this undated photo, a new road has been built amid the ruins of buildings and other structures in the former commercial district of Marawi City. Government compensation for properties damaged during the five-month siege in 2017 is expected to hasten the city’s rebuilding. —Richel V. Umel

ILIGAN CITY, LANAO DEL NORTE, Philippines — The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has proposed P1 billion to defray compensation awards to victims of the five-month battle that followed after Islamic State-linked armed groups laid siege to Marawi City in 2017.

The amount, similar to the appropriation for 2023 and 2024, is contained in the proposed National Expenditure Program for 2025.

Another P154.7 million is proposed for operating costs of the Marawi Compensation Board (MCB), the body overseeing the compensation process, whose nine-member governing board was appointed by President Marcos in February last year.

READ: Marawi folk protest ‘unjust’ valuation of damaged properties

Government compensation for lost and damaged properties in 32 affected villages of Marawi, as well as the death of loved ones, is mandated under Republic Act No. 11696, or the Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Act of 2022, free of tax.

The MCB opened the filing of claims on July 4, 2023, and concluded last July 3, garnering a total of 14,495 applications for compensation. Of these, 8,393 were for multiple claims, 209 for structures, 5,701 for other property claims, and 192 for deaths.

Legal and technical evaluation

Under MCB rules, the claims will undergo legal and technical evaluation by its secretariat to ascertain veracity before being brought to the board for adjudication and approval, which is then the basis for awarding the monetary compensation.

The MCB first awarded compensation on Nov. 20 last year, at P7.7 million for 22 deaths, three of whom belonged to just one family. Awards for structure claims began on April 5 this year, raising hopes that the displaced families can begin to rebuild their homes.

Of 487 claims it approved as of July 18, the MCB was able to disburse some P299.7 million to compensate 203 eligible claimants as of Aug. 1. According to DBM data, the MCB was only able to disburse P13.65 million for compensation in 2023.Five-year deadline

Under RA 11696, the MCB has five years, reckoned from the effectivity of the law’s implementing rules and regulations on May 19, 2023, to perform its functions. Beyond the five years, the remaining work will be undertaken by the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development.

The number of compensation applicants pales in comparison with the projected level of over 20,000, with an estimated total claim of some P50 billion.

According to MCB Board Secretary Sittie Raifah Pamaloy-Hassan, the difference could likely be due to the consolidation of various claims into one application, especially among those who were merely renting houses.

Also, many applicants represent several claims for structures and other properties, Pamaloy-Hassan said.

The MCB, according to her, initially used the post-conflict needs assessment of Task Force Bangon Marawi and the social cartography of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to estimate the volume of potential claimants.

A government profiling in 2018 counted more than 15,000 families displaced from 24 villages in the city center.

During his State of the Nation Address, President Marcos underscored the importance of rebuilding Marawi, saying the next step is to restore critical utilities, such as the supply of water and electricity, for families who will soon relocate to their old communities.