Task Force Zamboanga (TFZ) commander Col. Andrelino Colina has made this clear during an information caravan held at the Talon-Talon Elementary School on March 15.
“No-build zones ang mga areas na ito (These areas are no-build zones),” he emphasized.
However, IDPs who tend to their seaweed livelihood can come during the daytime. “Pero hindi puwedeng mag-overnight (But you cannot stay overnight),” Col. Colina added.
The TFZ chief explained that security in those identified areas is still of paramount concern. “Siguro ang sabi ninyo, ‘ang tagal na namin doon’ at sanay na kayo doon sa mga lugar at gusto niyo pa ring bumalik, pero hindi na po tayo maghihintay na may mangyayari pa,” he clarified.
(You could say that you’ve been living there for so long and you really want to go back, but we cannot risk your security in those places anymore.)
Yet, another reason why these four areas were identified as no-build zones is that they are hazard-prone, as per Republic Act 7586 or the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act. Instead of being a resettlement area, the government will be developing them as an aquaculture zone, where the affected families with livelihood there will be beneficiaries of. The IDPs then will be relocated to permanent shelters of different modes, but still within the nearby areas.
“Ang pinakamahalaga po para sa amin ay ang inyong siguridad. Ang mga tropa natin halos 24 oras ang pag-papatrolya, at gagawin po namin ang lahat upang siguraduhin na ligtas kayo sa lahat ng oras,” assured the colonel.
(The most important thing for us is to ensure your security. Our troops are on patrol 24 hours, and we will do everything we can to ensure that you are safe all the time.)
However, Col. Colina had an appeal for the IDPs and for all residents in general. “Ginagawa po namin ang aming trabaho, pero ang hinihingi lang po naming sa inyo ay ang inyong tulong at kooperasyon. Sana wag po kayong maging walang pakialam. Kailangan ay lahat po tayo ay magtulungan upang mapanatili ang kapayapaan sa Zamboanga at tuluyang uunlad ito,” he urged.
(We will continuously be doing our job, but what we ask is for your concern and cooperation, and not apathy. We need to work together to maintain peace in Zamboanga and promote development.)
Under the Zamboanga City Roadmap to Reconstruction and Recovery, or the Z3R, new homes that will be built over the devastated communities will have to be resilient to calamities, whether natural, or man-made. The plan outlines the security and development of all the affected persons during the Zamboanga siege to ensure that no such mass displacement would ever happen again.