President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. may lead in October the turnover of several facilities that have been completed in line with the rehabilitation of Marawi City from the five-month siege by the Maute and Abu Sayyaf terror groups in 2017.

Responding to complaints of residents still reeling from the effects of the attack six years after it ended, the newly designated overseer of Task Force Bangon Marawi assured them that spotty electricity and water supplies would be addressed.

Assistant Secretary Melissa of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development said they are fast-tracking all the TFBM projects as ordered by President Marcos to DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar.

Aradanas said the people displaced by the conflict that ended on 23 October 2017 could return to their normal lives.

The TFBM held an inter-agency meeting last week to refocus its efforts on the rehabilitation of Marawi City. Agencies involved in the undertaking were told to submit monthly progress reports to the Office of the President.

"With this new order, our coordination, dedication, and passion to serve our Maranaw brothers and sisters have been placed in the limelight more than ever," Aradanas said.

Among the ongoing projects are the construction of the Marawi City General Hospital by the Department of Health, additional school buildings by the Department of Education, and the New Marawi City Jail by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology.

The National Housing Authority recently turned over the Marawi Convention Center to the city government in a short ceremony on the sidelines of the TFBM meeting. Marawi City Mayor Majul Gandamra and NHA-IX Regional Manager
Al-Khwarizmi Indanan led the signing of the transfer certificate.

Fullest potential

"As we accept the Marawi Convention Center today, let us recognize the responsibility that comes with this asset. We must utilize it to its fullest potential to ensure that this serves the needs and aspirations of our people," Gandamra said.

About half of the 56 agencies under the TFBM are still working on their projects, after many of the original member agencies had completed their assigned tasks.

This year, TFBM has lined up the inauguration of three school buildings of 20 classrooms each, the Raya Madaya II Barangay Hall Complex, the Network Operation Center Building, and the Digital Transformation Center.

The rebuilt Bato Ali mosque, the new Marawi Peace Park, Rizal Park, and the restored Towak a Bata and Towak a Lapot will also be inaugurated. The mosque was one of the main battlegrounds between the military and the terror groups.

The historic battle that ended the five-month conflict in October 2017 took place in the old "padian," or public market, from which the peace park emerged.

On Monday, the Marawi Compensation Board said 4,762 people had filed claims for damage from the siege totaling P17.456 billion.

The MCB told lawmakers the 4,762 claimants represented only 19 percent of the estimated 23,489 persons directly affected by the five-month armed conflict between government forces and the combined Maute and Abu Sayyaf terror groups.

The siege ended on 23 October 2017, with the surrender or killing of the remaining terrorists. The conflict left over 1,100 people dead, including 44 government troopers. It displaced thousands of people.