Conglomerate Ayala Corp. said Tuesday it will establish a 70-bed drug rehabilitation center in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.
Ayala Corp. said Ayala Foundation would construct a drug rehabilitation facility called Siyapen Center to accommodate drug dependents undergoing outpatient care in the city.
The facility, the first drug rehabilitation center in Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, will occupy an existing building owned by the city government of Marawi.
Ayala Foundation through the group’s construction unit Makati Development Corp. will oversee the refurbishment of the structure in keeping with the requirements for an efficient and humane drug rehabilitation facility.
Ayala Foundation will also provide seed funding for the first year of operations of the drug rehabilitation facility.
The refurbishment of the two-story drug rehabilitation center is expected to be completed in April and will then be turned over to local government of Marawi for operations.
Ayala Corp. chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala said the project was in response to the government’s call for private sector to support its campaign against drug abuse.
“The Siyapen Drug Rehabilitation Center is our way of addressing another challenge Mindanao faces, and of responding to the national government’s call for private sector support in addressing the drug problem,” Zobel de Ayala said during the signing of the memorandum of understanding with the Marawi city government.
“At Ayala we have always believed that, whether in Mindanao or elsewhere in our archipelago, fostering inclusive development will always require collaboration between the government and the private sector,” he said.
The Philippine National Police reported at least 123 persons were arrested for suspicion of drug related involvement in Marawi as of Nov. 22, 2016. At least 471 persons also voluntarily surrendered to the local police.
“We believe that the Siyapen Center will contribute significantly to the treatment and rehabilitation of the drug dependents in ARMM, particularly in Marawi City. In building Siyapen, we hope to provide a space where person-centered recovery is made first priority, thereby paving the way for the meaningful reintegration into society,” Ayala Foundation president Ruel Maranan said.
