Former assemblyman joins Marawi siege victims in queue for compensation claims

MARAWI, Philippines – Yasir Naga, a former member of the Regional Legislative Assembly of the now-defunct Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), was unmindful of the queue of residents moving from one table to another table and answering questions from the staff in the compensation claims office in Barangay Marinaut West in Marawi City on Tuesday, July 18.

Like others, the former regional assemblyman is applying for compensation for the losses his family suffered during the five months of fighting between government troops and Islamic State-inspired Maute-ISIS gunmen that devastated most of the cultural and commercial district of Marawi City in 2017.

Naga is seeking P53 million in compensation for his family’s properties – the Pacasum College, an ancestral house, and a commercial building – which were destroyed by the 2017 shelling and fighting.

He and the other claimants completed the application filing process in less than an hour amid the huge crowd.

“I hope we get paid by December because, like other war victims, we have suffered long enough,” Naga said.

Based on the Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Act of 2022, the government set aside P1 billion to pay Marawi residents who lost properties or family members due to the fierce fighting.

Maisara Dandamun-Latiph, the chairperson of the Marawi Compensation Board (MCB), said compensations would be released to claimants after they submit their detailed claims with evidence for the board’s review.

Latiph said the P1-billion fund set aside by the government would not suffice to pay the estimated 100,000 claimants, and she hoped that Congress would approve P7 billion more in 2024.

Under the MCB Implementing Rules and Regulations, owners of concrete structures that were destroyed are entitled to P18,000 per square meter as compensation. Those with damaged properties can claim P12,000 per square meter.

For structures made of mixed concrete and wood, owners are entitled to P9,000 per square meter.

Meanwhile, the family of those who were killed during the Marawi siege can claim P350,000 each.

“The burden of proof will be on the claimants. They should provide documents, affidavits, and police reports to prove their claims,” Latiph told reporters.

She said all the documents filed by the claimants would be checked against the data in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources “Katagombalay” information system. The board would also use data from the Task Force Bangon Marawi, which profiled the affected Maranao residents, and the Geographic Information System provided by the nongovernmental organization International Alert.

Latiph said records of the claims made by 12,500 residents from the former “ground zero” in Marawi City alone have been kept at the Lanao del Sur provincial government.

Marawi residents began filing their claims on July 4 after the publication of the MCB’s Implementing Rules and Regulations in national newspapers in June.

As of July 18, a total of 1,153 people have filed their claims online, and 479 others opted to submit their claims at the MCB office in Barangay Marinaut West. – Rappler.com