Marawi Compensation Board chair, members named

CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – Malacañang has appointed the head and members of Marawi Compensation Board (MCB) who would facilitate the tax-free payment of reparations for Marawi residents who lost much during the five-month fighting in 2017.

Presidential Communication Office (PCO) Secretary Cheloy Garafil confirmed their appointment on Tuesday, January 31, as Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin administered the oath of office of its chair, lawyer Maisara Dandanum-Latiph, in Malacañang.

Bersamin signed the appointment of Latiph and eight members of the Marawi Compensation Board on January 13.

Latiph is a former legislator and member of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), the interim government in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Also appointed to the compensation board are the following:

• Sittie Aliyyah Lomondot Adiong
• Dalomabi Lao Bula
• Mustapha Dimampao
• Jamaica Lamping Dimaporo
• Mabandes Sumndad Diron Jr.
• Moslemen Macarambon Sr.
• Romaisa Lomentong Mamutuk
• Nasser Macapado Tabao

 “The long wait is over,” said Drieza Lininding, the chairman of the Moro Consensus Group (MCG) which has been calling on the government for the past five years to compensate Maranao families affected by the Marawi Siege.

Lininding asked the board to convene immediately and set the implementing rules for the distribution of a P1-billion compensation package for the affected residents.

The board was created by a law to facilitate the tax-free payment of reparations to residents who lost residential and commercial properties during the fighting.

The law grants private property owners compensation based on the sum of the current market value of their lots, and shoulder the replacement costs of structures and improvements.

The Marawi Reconstruction and Conflict Watch hailed the appointment of MCB members, noting that five of its members are women.

“The government made good its promise to compensate Marawi war victims with a reparation board that is truly independent, inclusive, and led by women,” the group said. – Rappler.com