MARAWI City ― Basac Malutlut, the village where the fighting started in 2017 between Maute militants and government troops, was not included in the list of affected villages due to reparations and compensation.
Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Adiong said because of this oversight, residents of Barangay Basac Malutlut cannot ask for repatriations from the government through the Republic Act No. 11696 or the Marawi Siege Compensation Act of 2022.
“But how can this be when Barangay Basac Malutlut was the place where the fighting started in 2017,” Adiong said.
The governor said he can not understand why the framers of Republic Act No. 11696 or the Marawi Siege Compensation Act of 2022 made the mistake of not including Basac Malutlut.
“There was less damage (to) the buildings in the village but most of the residents have lost money and (pieces of jewelry) in the looting that followed,” Adiong said.
He said this is one of the reasons why Lanao del Sur and multisectoral groups in Marawi drafted their own Implementing Rules and Regulations for the Marawi Compensation Board last Tuesday.
“So we can still correct this injustice so the residents there can ask compensation,” Adiong said.
Republic Act No. 11696 or the Marawi Siege Compensation Act of 2022, passed into law by former President Rodrigo Duterte on April 13, 2022, provides the mechanism of a compensation board for Marawi residents can seek reparation and compensation for the losses in their properties during the five-month siege in 2017.
The law, however, recognized only 24 barangays as “Most Affected Areas” and eight other barangays as “Other Affected Areas.”
Basac Malutlut and seven other villages destroyed during the fighting were not included in the list, according to Lanao del Sur officials.
On Monday, October 17, residents here will observe the 5th anniversary of the bloody siege that left more than 84,000 families or 388,000 individuals homeless.
Adiong said most of the affected areas are still without water five years after. He said only a few pipes were laid out by the Local Water Utilities Administration.
Task Force Bangon Marawi manager Assistant Secretary Felix Castro Jr, said the government’s rehabilitation work in Marawi slowed down, first during the election period and then subsequent replacement of officials when President Marcos took over.
Castro said while TFBM completed many projects like the construction of roads, mosques, and government buildings, many projects have been slowed down.
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