TUGUEGARAO CITY, Philippines – The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has installed Vice Mayor Jojo Caronan as the new mayor of this city.
DILG regional director Marlo Iringan conveyed to Caronan his new duties after serving the dismissal order of Mayor Jefferson Soriano on Thursday.
Soriano, whose supporters blocked Iringan from entering the city hall, vowed to contest the dismissal order handed down by the Office of the Ombudsman.
“The legal battle is far from over… the order of the ombudsman has not yet reached its finality until the Supreme Court rules on it,” he said in a statement sent to The STAR.
He holds “neither grudge nor rancor” against Caronan, he added.
Benjamin de Guzman, a close ally of Soriano, assumed the post of vice mayor since he is the councilor with the most votes.
The ombudsman removed Soriano and city administrator Ronald Brillantes for grave abuse of authority for allowing the operation of a street fair without authorization from the city council.