Marawi Compensation Board (MCB) chairperson lawyer Maisara Dandamun-Latiph expressed the need for more plantilla positions in a bid to expedite the processing and issuance of claims to the victim-survivors of the Marawi siege.
She disclosed this during the budget deliberations of the finance subcommittee on Tuesday, Sept. 3, presided over by Senator Risa Hontiveros. MCB is a quasi-judicial body that awards monetary compensation under Republic Act No. 11696 known as the Marawi Siege Victim's Compensation Act of 2022.
Hontiveros was optimistic about tackling and addressing the challenges in implementing the said law.
“It's been seven years since the Marawi siege and the people of Marawi have yet to truly get their lives back together. The passage of R.A. 11696 or the Marawi Compensation Act gave them a glimmer of hope that somehow they can restore whatever kind of normalcy the law can afford them,” Hontiveros said.
Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa expressed support to the MCB's request for an additional 51 plantilla positions to speed up the process and issuance of compensation.
“Our inputs are just to help you, but at the end of the day, we are looking at you. So, what is necessary should be given to you (to the Board),” Dela Rosa said in a mix of Filipino and English.
“I am willing to give you what you need because you made that request not for any other reason but for the efficiency purposes in the disbursement of your claims. So, we are here to support you if really necessary,” he added.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III is also keen on ironing out the concerns regarding the plantilla positions in the MCB.
Pimentel commended the board for having a noble purpose, noting that it was created to compensate the victims of the 2017 Marawi siege and the requests of the board are coming from the people on the ground. The minority leader said the request of the MCB for an additional plantilla position for Accountant IV is justifiable.
“What they want is to help, not to get detained,” Pimentel said, stressing that the very huge amount needs an accounting expert to disburse it.
Latiph said the board was given P1 billion for the compensation of victims of the siege as of March 2024 of this year and the board is asking P6 billion for next year’s compensation.
Meanwhile, Sen. Cynthia Villar inquired about the total number of Marawi claimants and the total compensation that was already disbursed.
“I just want to know how many are the claimants, how many (claimants) you have finished and how many years have you been doing it,” Villar asked.
Latiph told the senator that there are 14, 495 claimants with a total compensation budget of P31.8 billion. She said the board is targeting to approve 2,160 claims with a yearly award amounting to P5.8 billion.
Latiph said a lack of personnel is hindering the disbursement of the compensation and that the approval of more personnel would allow them to be able to compensate 3,000 claimants annually and accomplish their target by June 2028.
Senator Robinhood Padilla expressed gratitude for the additional support promised by the Senate for the Marawi Compensation Board (MCB) for 2025.
Padilla said the MCB particularly needs additional personnel to make sure it does its job correctly in distributing compensation to those affected by the fighting to liberate Marawi from armed groups in 2017.
"Napakahalaga sa mga Muslim ang pag ganitong pera hindi namin pera ito, pera po ito ng taumbayan na ibinigay sa amin, sa kanila ang kapangyarihan ito po ay ipamahagi at bayaran ang mga nasalanta, tinamaan ng gyera (It is important for Muslims to make sure that public funds are distributed correctly to those affected by the fighting)," he said at the hearing for the 2025 budget of the MCB.
"Kaya napakasarap pong marinig na nakasuporta ang committee na ito. Katunayan may mga, siguro ang luha na pumatak sa aming mga mata ay kasagutan sa aming mga panalangin (It is very good to hear that this committee has voiced its support for the MCB. We shed tears of joy because our prayers are being answered)," he added.
MCB's proposed P1.164-billion budget for 2025 under the National Expenditure Program (NEP) has been submitted for plenary approval.