Detained Senator Leila de Lima on Wednesday lamented the slow rehabilitation of Marawi City saying the government lacked concrete actions to expedite its restoration three years after it was liberated from terrorists after five months of combat operations.
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
“The slow and delayed rehabilitation of Marawi is inexcusable. Tigilan na ni Duterte ang pambobolang paulit-ulit na (Duterte should stop promising that) ‘Marawi will be restored to its former glory.’ Totohanan at konkretong aksyon ang matagal nang hinihintay n gating mga kababayan (Our people are looking for true and concrete action),” De Lima said in a statement.
The senator said government authorities must act with urgency and compassion, while holding accountable those who committed lapses and abuses.
She pointed out that those who survived the harrowing siege, which lasted five months from May 23, 2017 to October 17, 2017, continue to suffer needlessly.
For the last three years, she noted many of the residents of Marawi City have yet to return to their respective communities, families remain homeless, and their children cannot return to school.
“At ngayong panahon ng pandemya, lalong namemeligro ang kanilang kalusugan at kabuhayan (And during this time of a pandemic, their health and livelihood are at risk),” she pointed out.
“If rehabilitation efforts will drag on for longer, the invisible wounds that the survivors are trying to recover from will fester, and might grow into a full-blown social unrest, which we can no longer afford,” she said.