Displaced residents who are housed in evacuation centers are commissioned by the Task Force Bangon Marawi in constructing temporary shelters in Barangay Sagongsongan, Marawi City through a cash-for-work program. (Divina M. Suson/davaotoday.com)
MARAWI CITY, Philippines — Internally displaced residents will be given role in constructing the transition houses here, an official said over the weekend.
Marawi City’s Field Engineer Mike Gulem said they are commissioning the evacuees as construction workers and laborers to have “a sense of ownership.”
“Four workers will be paid PhP15,000 to construct a single-detached house,” Gulem said in an interview Sunday, July 30.
The Department of Public Works and Highways-10 (DPWH-10) has already started the construction of two model houses last weekend here to kick off the building of some 5,000 temporary shelters for the internally displaced families who fled Marawi City due to the fighting between government troops and the Maute group.
The DPWH has partnered with the Army engineers and the Marawi City Engineer’s Office in constructing the transition houses for the displaced families as part of the early recovery and rehabilitation process.
The construction started even as the government troops continued fighting against the enemies in the battle area.
In an interview with the media, DPWH-10 Resident Engineer Abdulracman Paunte said they are expecting to finish the model houses after a week of work.
“Model house po (ito’ng ginagawa natin) ng Task Force Bangon Marawi, temporary shelter. ‘Yan ay pre-fabricated, ‘yan ay steel house, it is 26 square meters (floor area) at 4 x 7.7 metters (dimension). Ang tatlong unit (na row house) at pwedeng matapos in eight days,” Paunte said.
Each unit, Paunte added, will be occupied by one family. The other house is made of lumber and plywood with the dimension of 4 x 6 square meters which also be occupied by one family.
The 11-hectare relocation site is located in Barangay Sagonsongan, Marawi City and is divided into five areas which will accommodate 1,000 houses each.
Each area has communal kitchens, comfort rooms and washing areas. The electrical lines and water pipes will be installed by the Lanao Del Sur Electric Company and the Local Water Utilities Administration.
Lieutenant Colonel Jonjie Juguilon, commander of the 549th Engineer Construction Battalion, Philippine Army, said their role in the rehabilitation program is to give support to Task Force Bangon Marawi, where the 54th Engineer Brigade was the first unit of army engineers extended its support.
“Initially, ang mga equipment natin na pinadala na dito ay nandun na sa area kung saan nandun ‘yung conflict, then we have another backhoe equipment diyan sa Camp Ranao to support our troops, at the same time, we have another equipment like bulldozer, grader, backhoe loader para nag-start na talaga, kapag nag-full bloom na ‘yung rehabilitation, the Army is ready to respond,” Juguilon said.
Juguilon added that the Army engineers will not only construct the temporary shelters but will also secure civilian workers who are in the site the entire week.
“We are here to provide all necessary needs and support we can give before, during and after the construction of the shelters,” he said.(davaotoday.com)
