DAVAO CITY – A coalition of internally displaced people of Marawi are hoping that President Rodrigo Duterte will state his support for the immediate passage of the Marawi compensation bill in his final State of the Nation Address today, July 26.

In a statement on Monday, the CSO Marawi Compensation Advocates (CSO-MCA) has called on both houses of Congress to "expedite the passage of the Marawi compensation bill and urged the President to state unequivocally his support for compensation in his SONA speech."

"This is our plea to our president and lawmakers – to certify the passing of the compensation bill as urgent, so that we might have some justice for what happened in Marawi,” said Ding Cali, member of the newly established CSO Marawi Compensation Advocates (CSO-MCA) and director of the Kalimudan sa Ranao Foundation, Inc.

Saripada “Tong” Pacasum, Jr., a member of the Marawi Reconstruction Conflict Watch (MRCW) also said that the President should help get the law passed by stating his strong support for the bill's passage in his SONA to show that he cares about the IDPs.

"It’s not the only solution, but it will help alleviate our pain from the loss of lives and livelihood," Pacasum added.

The CSO-MCA said they expect President Duterte will "deliver on his promise to rebuild Marawi and turn it into a prosperous city."

"We want him to keep his promise that destroyed properties will be duly compensated. Finally, we want him to demonstrate that he is a man of his word,” the CSO-MCA said.

The coalition also urged the Task Force Bangon Marawi to prioritize the installation of basic necessities such as water and electricity for the IDPs.