The Ministry of Public Works spearheaded on Oct. 14 the unveiling of Marayag Integrated Local Farmers and Fisherfolks Food Terminal Complex at Sitio Marayag, Barangay Bayanga Norte in Matanog, Maguindanao del Norte. (Comenei Ali/BIO)
MATANOG, Maguindanao del Norte— The Bangsamoro Government through its various offices and agencies worked in full force to transform a former war zone into a center of commerce.
On Saturday, October 14, the Ministry of Public Works (MPW) spearheaded the unveiling of Marayag Integrated Local Farmers and Fisherfolks Food Terminal Complex at Sitio Marayag in Barangay Bayanga Norte of Matanog Municipality.
Matanog, a 4th class municipality bordering the Province of Lanao del Sur is known to many as one of the battlegrounds where massive displacement of people, loss of lives, and damaged to properties were reported during the Bangsamoro struggle.
It is located 50km away from Cotabato City and few kilometers away from the Camp Abubakar—the biggest camp of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) targeted by military operation when then President Joseph Estrada declared an all-out-war against the group in 2000.
“We are happy that our municipality is gradually turning into an economically viable environment,” said town mayor Zohria Bansil-Guro during the unveiling ceremony.
The lady mayor couldn’t help herself from being emotional when she shared the plight of her constituents during the all-out-war. While she recognized that the newly-opened project wouldn’t suffice in addressing inequalities, the mayor affirmed that it would bring significant impact to the lives of her constituents and a major breakthrough for Matanog.
In a separate interview with a local resident Anisa Macarimbang, 48, who owns a small restaurant just adjacent to the project site, she expressed her excitement about the complex’s opening.
“We have always longed for this kind of project and we are glad that it’s happening now,” she said.
Since she is one of those who will get a space in the dry section of the new public market, she plans to increase her market capital.
The food terminal complex features a public market for wet and dry goods, administration building, public terminal, access road, lined canal, and decentralized water treatment system. In a document handout by MPW, it has a total cost of P67, 847,740.06 sourced from the 2020 Special Development Fund (SDF).
On top of the annual block grant allocated by the state for the overall operation of the Bangsamoro Government, BARMM also receives a SDF amounting to P5-billion a year for 10 years from its ratification to allot amount for initiatives focused on “rebuilding, rehabilitation, and development of its conflict-affected communities” (Section 2, Article XIV of Republic Act 11054).
Chief Minister Ahod Ebrahim, in his 12-point priority agenda, included peace building interventions and support to strategic infrastructures to spur economic growth in the region.
“As we conduct the turnover ceremony of this food terminal and complex, we reflect upon the journey that has brought us here—a journey of resilience, peace, and a shared vision for a better Bangsamoro,” Ebrahim said in his message.
“The sacrifices and struggles of our fellow Bangsamoro paved the way for us to enjoy the dividends of the peace process. May the recipients of this good initiative safeguard the sustainability of this food terminal and complex project,” he added.
More development initiatives to come
Member of the 80-seat parliament of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Baileng Mantawil was thankful for the full realization of the project.
Mantawil, whose father Malik Mantawil served the first parliament from 2019 to 2022, shared that it was a legacy of his father which she is continuing to pursue hence she committed to provide more support to spur economic vitality.
The lady solon said that a fish production project is set to be implemented in Barangay Kidama of Matanog.
“We will be putting 10 to 12 Norwegian HDPE (high-density polyethylene) fish cages that could accommodate in every cage is up to 50k to 60k fingerlings of Bangus,” Mantawil shared.
This means that Matanog would be producing around 1.2 million bangus every year and would make Matanog the aquaculture capital of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), she further explained, adding that this fish product can be sold at farmgate price at the newly-opened food terminal complex.
Mantawil also disclosed that she already talked to Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) Minister Engr Aida Silongan for the provision of fish processing plant which she said would be dependent on the hydro-powerplant that would be approved by Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authority (BPDA) Director-General Engr Mohajirin Ali, who was also present during the event.
“We need a fish processing plant so that we could have our own first halal fish processing plant for the deboning of Bangus produced from Illana Bay,” she cited.
Meanwhile, Ali informed the crowd that the unveiling of the food terminal complex was just an initial phase and he hopes to have a second. He affirmed that his team had already conducted a site visit to the potential hydro-powerplant location.
“We recognized that we have a problem on source of electricity in Maguindanao hence we already asked our team to work on it,” he said. (Abdullah Matucan/BIO)
