Dino Sarigidan, Vice President of the people’s organization, Lombay Ka Marawi, spoke at the 30th General Assembly of the Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies (PHILSSA) last August 17, 2020.
“Talagang maraming nahihirapan [sa Covid-19 pandemic], lalo kaming internally displaced persons (IDPs) dahil hindi pa kami nakakamove-on (Many people are truly having a hard time, especially IDPs like us who have not moved on),” began Sarigidan.
Since the siege happened in 2017, the people of Marawi have not been able to move forward. The battle lost a thousand lives and forced 370,000 people to flee their homes.*
“[Noong] Marawi Siege, nakakatravel kami sa Iligan. Ngayon, kailangan ng travel pass. Hindi pa kami nakabangon, may dumating pa na pinakamahirap na sakit. Sa ngayon po, 143 cases ay halos local transmission. (During the Marawi siege, we could travel to Iligan. Nowadays, we need a travel pass. We have not recovered yet, and the most difficult sickness arrived. As of now we have 143 cases, almost all from local transmission).”
“Ngayon hindi maasikaso ng IDPs ang livelihood nila. Pinipilit nila maghanapbuhay, pero mahirap (The IDPs could not manage their business. They are trying their best to earn money, but it has been difficult)”.
But Lomboy Ka Marawi, a Maranao term for “Rise Marawi,” had to be self-reliant despite the constraints. It distributed weekly food packs to those who were stranded. It conducted feeding activities during Ramadan. It sustained 36 IDP households in partnership with Green Steps and Aksyon sa Kahandaan sa Kalamidad at Klima (AKKMA), a national coalition of community-based people’s organizations. Lombay Ka members gave support to frontliners in Marawi and Iligan by providing surgical gowns, face shields, and face masks to them.
Even with the community quarantine restrictions, Lomboy Ka Marawi pushes to be proactive in serving others.
The theme of PHILSSA’s General Assembly was “Kuwentong-Buhay ng mga Lider-Komunidad: Mga Hamon at Tugon sa COVID-19 Pandemic.” It featured stories from community leaders on how they overcame challenges during the pandemic.
Watch the full webinar here.
*Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer