MCB requests add'l manpower to hasten claims of Marawi siege victims

The Marawi Compensation Board (MCB) had requested the hiring of additional manpower to fast-track the processes and distribution of claims for the victims of the 2017 Marawi Siege until 2028. 

Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa expressed support for the board’s request for additional manpower during the Senate’s deliberation of the MCB’s proposed 2025 P1.164 billion budget on Tuesday. 

“I am willing to give you what you need because you made that request not for any other reason but for the efficiency purposes in the disbursement of your claims. So, we are here to support you if really necessary,” Dela Rosa said after MCB chairperson Maisara Dandamun Latiph lamented that the compensation board currently has insufficient human resources. 

According to Latiph, the MCB needed to fill 51 more plantilla or regular positions so they could hit their target of processing 3,000 claims per year.

“Naisip po namin na kung gusto namin ma-maintain ang aming performance dapat madagdagan kami ng 51 na plantilla positions (We thought that if we wanted to maintain our performance, we needed to 51 plantilla positions),” she said. 

Latiph said the MCB currently has 122 personnel working on the compensation works. 

“Ang target namin every year 2,160 dahil ‘yun ang kapasidad namin ngayon. Kung mapapabilis at madadagdagan ang aming manpower baka matapos namin ang 3,000 annually na target namin—by 2028, tapos na namin ang 11,000 (Our annual target is 2,160 because that's our current capacity. If we can speed up and increase our manpower, we might be able to reach our annual target of 3,000—by 2028, we'll be able to reach our target of 11,000),” she added.

With MCB’s current personnel capacity, Latiph said the board can only cater to 8,969 applicants by 10 June 2028. Thus, she said the remaining 3,000 applicants from the 11,000 target will be left to the processing of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD). 

“Nasa batas na after 5 years, ang DSHUD na ang magpapatuloy ng trabaho (It was stated in the law, after 5 years, DSHUD will take over the work)," Latiph pointed out. 

Under the Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Act of 2022, MCB shall facilitate the tax-free payment of compensation or reparations to qualified individuals whose properties and possessions were lost or destroyed due to the 2017 Marawi Siege.

Latiph, likewise, mentioned that 46 of MCB’s 122 personnel are to return to their original positions by the end of 2024.

She noted that these personnel are current lawyers and structural engineers contracted to them by the Office of the President (OP).