PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has appointed housing czar Eduardo del Rosario as head of Task Force Bangon Marawi, the body mandated to oversee the rebuilding of the war-torn city.
In an administrative order signed Oct. 27, the President said it was necessary to proceed with the full-blown reconstruction of Marawi City following its liberation from Islamic-State inspired terrorists.
“The chairman of the HUDCC as head of the Task Force Bangon Marawi shall have operational control and supervision of the said task force and the overall responsibility to ensure that the objectives of this order are accomplished,” the administrative order said.
The sub-committee on housing, formerly under the Office of the Cabinet Secretary, has been placed under the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, which will be “primarily responsible for the immediate rehabilitation and construction of temporary or permanent shelters, and the restoration of water, electricity, and other public utilities.”
The sub-committee on security, peace and order, on the other hand, will be jointly chaired by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and acting Interior Secretary Catalino Cuy.
President Duterte declared Marawi City freed from the Maute group last Oct. 17, which marked the start of the city’s rehabilitation period.
The reorganization of Task Force Bangon Marawi reflects the shift in government’s priority in rebuilding and developing war-affected areas in Marawi.
Earlier, Camarines Sur Rep. Lray Villafuerte urged Malacanang’s economic team to draft a “mini-Marshall Plan” for Marawi City amid estimates that rebuilding the war-torn city would cost more than P90 billion.