Yung finale pala ng series na Incognito ay ginanap sa tinatawag na Ground Zero sa Marawi. Ito yung lugar na mukha pa ring war-ravaged hanggang ngayon, almost eight years na since natapos ang Marawi Siege.

It was the most deady and destructive urban siege since World War II in the whole of Southeast Asia. A siege that Duterte himself inflamed after he dared the Maute Group in 2016 to attack Marawi.

Anyway, by now, hindi na dapat mukhang binomba at wasak pa rin ang Ground Zero sa Marawi. Nag-release kasi ng P10 billion si Digong pagkatapos na pagkatapos ng giyera for the supposed rehab of Marawi that should’ve taken only three years, or dapat tapos na by 2020. 

Maraming plano dapat tulad ng modern parks, infrastructure, at re-building ng Ground Zero which was then the main business and commercial district ng Marawi.

Today, of the 1.1 million residents that used to live in Marawi before the siege, most have not returned. Over 1,200 people died, both combatants and civilians. Residents left behind describe the once vibrant city as now essentially a dead city.

And what happened to the billions supposedly released, including P5 billion of unused Yolanda funds? Tanong niyo nalang si Digong. Sa totoo lang nung 2019, nag-suggest pa nga siya na private business at yung mayayaman nalang magtuloy ng rehab, like WTF anong ginawa niya sa pera?

Sabi nga sa isang Al-Jazeera report, as of 2024, only 596 claims were approved for property and civilian death claims out of over 14,0000 claims.

Yung Ground Zero ay wasak pa rin when supposedly yun ang dapat ni-rehab nang mabilisan. Pero until now, wasak pa rin. Just watch Incognito if you want proof.

Yun namang mga nakitang improvements sa Marawi ay yung lakeside stadium, convention center, at rebuilding ng Grand Mosque. Yung stadium at convention center? Mostly unused kasi nga, marami ang hindi na nakabalik sa Marawi.

How about yung pabahay? Sabi sa isang Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) report noong 2023, nasa 17,793 households ang na-displace sa MAA or most affected area ng siege.

Nasa 953 na pamilya ang na-resettle na sa permanent shelters habang 4,916 na pamilya ang bakwit pa rin as of 2023. The rest, iniwan nang tuluyan ang Marawi. 

Hindi pa rin nakakabangon nang tuluyan ang Marawi nine years after hamunin ni Digong na sugurin ng Maute Group ang Marawi, almost eight years matapos ang seige, at six years after dapat sana ay tapos na ang rehab ng Marawi, with the P10 billion in rehab funds napunta mostly sa pagtayo ng stadium at convention center, at halos wala sa pabahay.

Marawi is one of the biggest budols of Digong, right in the heart of Muslim Mindanao. Yung hindi na nga naitayo o nasimulan man lang yung Mindanao Railway, hinamon pa ang mga terorista to attack and destroy Marawi, which they did.

So the next time may bilib na bilib na DDS kay Digong, kumustahin mo ano na ba nangyari sa Marawi.

Saan napunta ang 10B? By Gerry Cacanindin