Marawi City: President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Monday acknowledged steady progress in the government's infrastructure rehabilitation efforts in Marawi City, noting that key facilities - including schools, a hospital, and a port - are nearing completion, years after the 2017 siege. During his visit to several project sites, Marcos emphasized the importance of sustained recovery work to restore essential public services to residents affected by the conflict.
According to Philippines News Agency, among the sites inspected were the Temporary Learning Spaces (TLS) in Barangay Sagonsongan, the Marawi City-Dansalan Integrated School, the Marawi General Hospital, and the Marawi Port. At the TLS, Marcos led the distribution of Starlink internet kits to several schools and school supplies to students. He described the provision of learning support as a top priority.
The newly constructed school buildings, Marcos said, are nearly ready for use and may accommodate up to 10,000 learners. The President also inspected the Marawi General Hospital, a 100-bed primary care facility that he said should be operational by August 2025, in time for his planned return for the inauguration. 'Babalik ako dito (I will return here). I want to ribbon cut by August,' Marcos said.
He added that the hospital has sufficient power but still requires a standby generator to ensure uninterrupted operation during power outage. At the Marawi Port, Marcos highlighted its strategic role in connecting 18 municipalities around Lake Lanao and announced plans to construct additional ports to improve regional connectivity. 'We will put others around the lake para maganda 'yung connectivity natin,' he said.
The President also reported that issues regarding water supply are being resolved through coordination with the Department of National Defense, which controls part of the system's infrastructure. While acknowledging there is still more work to be done, Marcos expressed tempered satisfaction with the progress achieved.
'These are the main infrastructure developments that we have initiated in Marawi. Marami pa tayong gagawin (We still have a lot of job to do),' he said. The Marawi rehabilitation project remains one of the most complex post-conflict reconstruction efforts in the Philippines, aimed at rebuilding homes, institutions, and essential services in the wake of the five-month battle in 2017 between government forces and extremist groups.
