JOINT CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE ON THE MARAWI SIEGE VICTIMS COMPENSATION ACT OF 2022

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING AND PRESENTATION OF PERFORMANCE REPORTS BY KEY GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
SEPTEMBER 11, 2023
OPENING STATEMENT

Good morning everyone.

Nobody wins in a war. This is a fact that any survivor is forced to accept, and it is especially true when we get to the hardest part. The part where you try to rebuild the life you lost, where you try to recover as much as you can from a past that is practically impossible to get back. Kung nawala na sa iyo ang lahat-lahat, paano ka nga ba magsisimulang muli? Naiintindihan ko po na ito po mismo ang pinagdadaanan ng mga kapatid natin sa Marawi.

On April 13, 2022, a glimmer of hope was given to our brothers and sisters. Nakita ng Kongreso at ng ating pangulo na hindi maaaring hayaan nating magsimula sa wala ang ating mga kapatid. Then President Rodrigo Duterte approved Republic Act No. 11696, what we now all know as the "Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Act of 2022."

This Congressional Oversight Committee on Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Act of 2022 is tasked by Republic Act No. 11696 to oversee, monitor, and evaluate the implementation of Republic Act No. 11696 or the Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Act of 2022.

Today, we want to hear from our invited resource persons the status of the application for compensation of Marawi Siege Victims. How many have filed their application? How many have received their compensation from the government, and how much of the P1 billion budget allocated for this year has been utilized and actually paid to the victims? And since we are in the middle of congressional hearings for the 2024 National Expenditure Program, we want to know if the P1 billion allocated for Marawi Siege Victims Compensation Fund for next year will be enough to process and release all the claims filed with the Marawi Compensation Board. Lastly, we want to know why Barangay Bubonga of Marawi City, and its residents who also suffered because of the Marawi Siege, was excluded in the list of the affected barangays.

With this, we hope to shed light on the developments and improvements, as well as (on) the challenges and threats, in terms of implementing the law. Ultimately, we hope to alleviate the burdens that the survivors are still facing.

I now yield to my Co-chair from the House of Representatives.