Senatorial candidate Jose Manuel ‘Chel’ Diokno on Thursday, April 28, called out the government for the ongoing delay in the rehabilitation of Marawi City and in the settlement of land titles of displaced residents.

Diokno, a human rights lawyer, noted the rehabilitation of Marawi is far from done since the Marawi siege that happened in May to October 2017.

“Halos limang taon na ang nakalipas mula nang mangyari ang bakbakan pero hanggang ngayon, hindi pa rin nakababangon nang tuluyan ang Marawi City (It’s almost five years have passed since the gunfight occurred but until now, Marawi City has not fully recovered),” he said.

“Bukod pa riyan, marami pa ring residente ng siyudad ang hindi pa nakababalik sa kanilang mga tahanan at nananatili pa rin sa tinatawag na (Apart from that, many residents of of the city have not returned to their homes and they still stay in the so-called) transitory shelter,” Diokno added.

The veteran lawyer said the government has yet to address the issue of land ownership of displaced residents.

“Dapat resolbahin na ito ng gobyerno sa lalong madaling panahon upang mawala ang pangamba ng mga residente na wala na silang lupang babalikan sa Marawi (The government must resolve this at the soonest time so the worries of residents that they have no land to return to in Marawi will be gone),” he said.

Diokno pointed out the land ownership issues must be immediately addressed so it won’t hamper the rehabilitation works being undertaken by the government.

He expressed confidence that the approval of the Republic Act No. 11696 or the Marawi Siege Compensation Act of 2022 will hasten the recovery of Marawi City.

If he wins a Senate seat, Diokno is eyeing to establish access to free legal assistance in every barrio, like the Free Legal Helpdesk that he put up on his Facebook page, to provide ordinary citizens with immediate legal help.

Diokno also plans to push for an independent commission to investigate abuses allegedly committed or instigated by persons in authority, to avoid cover-ups and ensure that those who are supposed to enforce the law are punished when they blatantly break the law.