Mindanaotoday.com | Marawi IDPs elated over new, safer homes
By: Apipa Bagumbaran
MARAWI CITY – Families formerly living in danger zones, along the banks of Agus River and Lake Lanao in Marawi, are thankful for the new and safer homes they got from the government.
Rohanisah Asum conveyed her gratitude to the government for the permanent shelter that she can call her own family’s new home.
“We are grateful for being chosen to have a permanent shelter because it is difficult for us to live with our relatives. It’s hard to be homeless. But now, we have a house that we can truly call our own. So thank you very much. We can also do business in our backyard,” she said.
Cayamombao Cabugatan is also grateful for the house her family got from the government.
“We thank them because we now have our own house,” she said.
For Abdullatif Sandab, he said it gratified him to finally have a permanent home where his family could start anew.
“I’m grateful to the leadership of NHA because what we have been hoping for a long time has now happened. So to all the agencies, government or NGO, who helped us achieve our dreams, thank you and we are all happy,” he said.
Asum, Cabugatan and Sandab are among the 157 IDPs recently awarded permanent shelters in Pamayandeg sa Ranao Residences at Dansalan (PRRD) in Brgy. Gadongan.
The awarding was realized through the Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM), the city government of Marawi, and the National Housing Authority as the implementing agency which led the land development and construction of the units in the said area.
TFBM has been focusing on the building of 2,800 permanent shelters where families living in the ‘danger zones’ can be relocated.
Through the NHA, Social Housing Finance Corporation, UN-Habitat and the Government of Japan, and the local government units of Marawi and Lanao del Sur, permanent shelters were built in PRRD Village Phase I and II in Barangay Kilala, PRRD Village Phase III and IV in Brgy. Gadongan, Hadiya Village in Dulay West, Darusallam Village in Brgy. Dulay Proper, and Norsalam Village in Brgy. Patani.
This is on top of the permanent shelter project of the Bangsamoro government in Brgys. Mipaga and Patani (Pabahay ng BARMM) and Brgy. Kilala (BARMM Duplex Permanent Shelter)
To date, 1,906 units have been completed and 1,471 have been awarded to rightful beneficiaries.
“To Task Force Bangon Marawi, we are very grateful to them because they have been the brain of everything. Like in a computer, they are the CPU. They are the brain and it is through them we got to this. They are the ones who helped us before we achieved this. They were the ones who guided, assisted, helped, gave us everything],” said Nashiba Usman, also a shelter beneficiary and council leader in Gadongan. (APB | PIA-10 | Lanao del Sur)
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