Marawi rehab starts
MARAWI CITY— After being postponed five times, groundbreaking rites for this city’s rebuilding finally pushed through on Tuesday, paving the way for the start of debris clearing operations and rehabilitation of this war-torn city, officials said.
President Duterte, however, was absent during the ceremony led by Housing Secretary Eduardo Del Rosario, chair of Task Force Bangon Marawi, government and military officials at what used to be Rizal Park inside the so-called ground zero of the war between Islamic State fighters and government soldiers.
In a press briefing, Del Rosario said FinMat International Resources Inc. won the contract to clear debris in sector one of the main battle area.
This includes the villages of Mapandi, Tulali and Dagubduban.
P10-B fund
Del Rosario said the task force would evaluate FinMat’s work and determine whether the company “could really undertake the role” of clearing the entire ground zero.
Socioeconomic Planning Undersecretary Adora Navarro said a P10-billion fund had been earmarked for Marawi in the 2018 national budget.
Navarro said as of Oct. 10, P4.6 billion had already been released and P3.9 billion was “in the process” of being released.
“There is still some P1.5 billion left,” she said.
Del Rosario reiterated President Duterte’s commitment to see Marawi rise as a prosperous city again.
“That is the promise of Task Force Bangon Marawi,” he said.
He said aside from clearing debris, the rehabilitation program also called for road widening, installation of power and commu- nication lines underground and construction of government facilities like village halls with health centers and schools.
Immaterial
Part of the plan also called for the construction of a market on a 1-hectare lot in Padian village, a convention center and a centralized sewerage treatment plant “to protect the waters of Lake Lanao,” Del Rosario said.
He said the rehabilitation work could cost at least P80 billion.
But cost, he said, was “immaterial.”
“What is important is to restore normal lives,” he added.
Del Rosario said the government had considered foreign contractors for the rehabilitation program.
“But now, we will allow credible contractors to participate,” he said.
He said it would cost up to P1 billion to construct new mosques to replace at least 25 mosques that had been destroyed during the war.
The process of clearing debris and building a new road network could take up to a year and six months, Del Rosario said.