Tuguegarao Mayor Jefferson Soriano said Monday that he is ready to explain to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) his absence during the city’s floodings amid the onslaught of Typhoon Ulysses.
In a television interview, Soriano explained that Tuguegarao City was never under any storm signals when he left.
“I will not wait for the official communication anymore. I have prepared my explanation. As a matter of fact, I prepared it last night, and hopefully, I’ll be able to submit it today,” Soriano told ANC.
“I have to explain to them that Tuguegarao City and Cagayan [was] never under any storm signals when I left the city…” he added.
Soriano explained that he tried to go back to Tuguegarao city on November 12, but he said he could no longer pass through NLeX. He arrived in the city on November 13.
“What I did was I try to come back on the 12th, but I was not able to go through NLeX, so I waited for the water to subside then proceeded to Tuguegarao and was on Tuguegarao on the 13th, which was the height of the flooding, so I took over already…” Soriano said.
“I already took over the operation center for our rescue operations at that time. That was the height of the flooding in Tuguegarao,” he added.
Tuguegarao mayor ready to explain absence amid Ulysses
The Tuguegarao mayor admitted he regrets leaving his constituents as he also apologized for the incident.