MANILA - Malacañang on Thursday accused Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV of politicizing the rehabilitation of Marawi City.

This after the lawmaker sought an investigation into circumstances that led to the 5-month siege last year, which left the Islamic city in ruins, and the status of rehabilitation efforts.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque admitted that rehabilitating hard-hit parts of Marawi took a backseat as government prioritized the needs of those internally displaced.

“Ang sagot namin, pulitika lang po ‘yan. Hindi totoo na walang master plan ang pagbangon ng Marawi. Kung ‘di ginagawa ng gobyerno ang katungkulan nito para makabangon ang Marawi, kung walang vision, walang master plan, wala po sana tayo ngayon where we are,” Roque said in a press briefing in Marawi City.

(Our response is that this is just politics. It's not true that we don't have a master plan for the rehabilitation of Marawi. If government is not doing it's job to help Marawi get back on its feet, if there is no vision, if there is no master plan, we wouldn't be where we are now.)

“With due respect, we cannot agree with the conclusions made by Senator Trillanes. In any case, handang makipag-cooperate ang Palasyo kung matutuloy ang imbestigasyon na ‘yan sa Senado.”

(In any case, the Palace is ready to cooperate if the Senate investigation will push through.)

Roque sought understanding from Marawi residents who are growing impatient as government troops continued to bar them from going back to their homes.

“Alam niyo, lahat tayo naiinip pero matagal ang proseso ng pagbabangon,” he said in the wake of the first anniversary of the breakout of the conflict.

(We are all growing impatient but rehabilitation takes a long time.)

“Pagdating sa most affected area, ang gusto natin hindi bara-bara. We want ang bagong Marawi to be a showcase for the whole world to be admired.”

(When it comes to the most affected area, we do not want haphazard rehabilitation. We want the new Marawi to be a showcase for the whole world to be admired.)

In Senate Resolution No. 743, Trillanes, a vocal administration critic, urged the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security to investigate why Marawi fell into the hands of Islamic State-inspired terrorists.

He said the investigation aims to prevent a similar situation from happening again.

In his separate Senate Resolution No. 742, the lawmaker, meanwhile, asked the Senate Special Committee on Marawi City Rehabilitation to look into the status of rebuilding efforts, noting that the government has yet to present a comprehensive plan.

According to Roque, the Bangon Marawi Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Program (BMCRRP) is targeted for approval by the Cabinet this June.

The BMCRRP is composed of 892 short- and medium-term programs, projects, and activities (PPAs) that will be implemented by different government agencies for the reconstruction and development of Marawi City.

Over 1,000 people, mostly ISIS-inspired terrorists, were killed during the 5-month siege. It displaced some 200,000 residents and the government has yet to fully open the city to civilians, some of whom wish to rebuild their homes and bring their lives back to normal.

The government is implementing a P72-billion rehabilitation program for Marawi.