Albeit in a visibly slow phase, infrastructure development in Marawi City continues after the infamous siege staged by the militant groups four years ago but the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) called on Maranaos on Monday, May 24, to celebrate this year's "Week of Peace" in the Islamic City.

Grand Mosque (Screenshot from Task Force Bangon Marawi video)

The fourth year anniversary of the Marawi siege was commemorated on May 23. It has been four years since members of the Islamic State (IS)-linked Maute Group took control of Marawi City which ended in a five-month long warfare, resulting in the killing of nearly 1,000 terrorists and 250 government troops and civilians, 1,400 injured, and more or less 1.1 million displaced residents.

Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. said the theme for this year's week-long celebration is "Peace Starts with Us: Give, Work and Share" which "best reflects the importance of this occasion: the need for all of us to give back, work together, and share our blessings."

"What happened in Marawi four years ago was perhaps one of the most difficult chapters in the history of the city. But the Maranao people are known for your strength of character, determination and resilience. You have managed to overcome the odds," he said.

"Although there are still challenges, we are hopeful that we can surmount these through our collective effort to fully rehabilitate the Islamic City of Marawi," he added.

According to Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM), the national government is now on the third and last phase of its rehabilitation methodology in Marawi City.

The third phase refers to the "full blast rehabilitation" of public infrastructures inside the "Ground Zero," or the most affected areas, which is expected to be completed by December 2021.

Mapandi Bridge (Screenshot from Task Force Bangon Marawi)

Among the infrastructure projects being undertaken inside the most affected areas under the Phase 3 include the construction of the Marawi maritime outpost; the rehabilitation of the Banggolo, Mapandi, and Pumping bridges; construction of a Peace Memorial Park, Marawi Museum, various schools, a central fire station, and a traffic command station.

The government is also finishing the construction of road networks with solar lamps and underground utilities in destroyed villages, barangay complexes, and mosques including the Grand Mosque, Bato Mosque, Masjid Dosimangcop, Masjid Darussalam, and Marinaut Masjid.

The first two phases refer to the "early intervention program" and the "debris management program" which were implemented from November 2017 to October 2018, and October 2018 to February 2020, respectively.

The first phase included the provision of emergency assistance, water, food, clothing, and other basic necessities to the internally displaced persons (IDPs).

The construction of evacuation centers and temporary shelters as well as the provision of financial and livelihood support, health services, hygiene and sanitation, restoration of recreational activities, and biometric profiling of legitimate Marawi residents also took place in the first phase.

Meanwhile, the second phase was where the TFBM " millions of tons of debris" and the " and thousands of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and unexploded ordnances (UXOs)."

Galvez said the city government of Marawi, the provincial government of Lanao del Sur, and national line agencies have "done an outstanding job of providing essential services to the people despite the challenges brought about by COVID-19 pandemic."

He also commended civil society organizations and foreign donor agencies which have "played a key role in helping to build the capacity of residents to earn sustainable incomes, while donating much-needed funds for the implementation of various socio-economic measures."

He also cited the security sector for "ensuring the safety and security of the people while making sure that situations of conflict are immediately addressed."

Booths are set-up in Marawi City for the celebration of "Week of Peace." (Photo courtesy of Task Force Bangon Marawi)

"We believe that all of these interventions are making an impact on the lives of the Maranao people because of our collective vision, and that is, to give, to work, and to share not only our time, skills and resources, but more importantly, a part of ourselves," Galvez said.

"We would like to assure the Maranao and all our peace partners that the Office of the Presidential Adviser will stand behind you, as we build back a better, more peaceful and progressive Marawi City," he added.

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