‘P90 B needed to rebuild Marawi’

MANILA, Philippines — The government needs about P90 billion to rebuild Marawi and provide livelihood to residents affected by the conflict, the mayor of the city said yesterday. 

Majul Usman Gandamra said the amount covers the rebuilding of infrastructure, peace-building and efforts to promote economic activity in the area. 

“If we are to rebuild Marawi, we won’t bring it back to where it was....We will make it better than it was before,” Gandamra told a press briefing in Malacañang.

“All components will be covered. That includes... the restoration of the economy of Marawi...Because...of this siege, almost 100 percent of the economy collapsed,” he said.  

 Gandamra said the reconstruction and rehabilitation of affected areas would start in the first quarter of 2018.

He said more than 10,000 households or 50,000 people from 24 villages in the main battle area have lost their livelihood.  

About 13,000 displaced families or 70,000 people have returned to their homes. 

 Gandamra said it is better to reconstruct the affected areas instead of rebuilding it in another place. 

 “The proposal is really...very ambitious. It’s a nice proposal, but as to the applicability in our locality... we have to discuss it with our constituents.We have to consider...many factors like cultural, religious and the social sensibilities of our people,” he said.