Statement of DILG Sec. Mar Roxas on the Video of His Meeting with Tacloban Mayor Alfred Romualdez

Translated from: www.gov.ph

Good afternoon to all of us !

I am here to tell the truth about the questionable video that is being spread by the camp of Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez . For your information , there also appears to be a longer version of this YouTube video.

There is also a 51-minute audio recording that serves as the official minutes of the Consultation Meeting held last Nov . 14 , 2013, 6 days after .

I do not intend to waste time to answer this issue. I am one with our fellow citizens who are more willing to focus our work towards recovery.

But lies should not be allowed to spread at this point.

Anyone who watches the video will tell you:

First, the conversation in the video was doctored;

Second , the important part of the conversation was deliberately cut off and removed, along with the full context .

Anyone would immediately conclude that whoever made this video, had an evil plan in mind.

To those who have watched the longer video, the words that I have spoken to Mayor Romualdez were clear enough.

All I wanted to do: to clarify the division of labor and responsibilities of each.

He said, his city administrator said that " we can not do it anymore. " And that we have to take over.

To be clear, I told him to put it in writing so that there would be no finger pointing and blaming anyone someday.

And true enough, there now exists finger pointing and blaming.

It is very embarrassing to our people because it is from their taxes that all these kind of help that we pour into Tacloban and across the Visayas and other areas affected by Yolanda. It also includes the assistance and donations from various countries .

Obviously the purpose of this malicious video is to cover up Mayor Romualdez's own negligence as an elected official and to shift the blame to the national government .

It was the Mayor himself who violated his order to evacuate the people away from the danger zones.

He also violated his order that says that if it is a Code Blue during disaster, all officers of the City Hall must be physically present at the Operation Center.

I also found out that after Yolanda and until now, the important councils such as the City Council, City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and City Peace and Order Council have yet to hold a meeting for disaster response.

I sympathize with you, Mayor Romualdez, because you are also the victim of Yolanda, just like your provincemates and our other people in the Visayas.

But you should not be a victim forever. It's about time that you rise up and lead your city towards recovery .

Please trust that we in DILG together with the government will not stop giving aid until the people of Tacloban have fully recovered as well as the rest of 170 cities ravaged by Yolanda.