MALACAñANG on Friday confirmed the resignation of Benito Ramos as the executive director of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

In a text message, Strategic Communications secretary Ramon Carandang said that Ramos had already submitted his letter of resignation dated January 8 to Defense Secretary Volatire Gazmin. He added, however, that President Benigno Aquino 3rd had not yet acted on the letter.
“I don’t think it has been officially accepted yet,” he said

Carandang said that Ramos resigned to attend to his ailing wife who is said to have diabetes.
The resignation of Ramos is supposed to take effect on February 1.

Ramos served with the Armed Forces of the Philippines for over three decades before he retired in 2007 with the rank of major general. In 2010, Mr. Aquino appointed him to the Office of Civil Defense and later, as executive director of the Disaster agency.

Ramos, described as one of the most hardworking heads of the council, is the first undersecretary to open the council’s operation center to media. Previously, reporters and media workers were barred from entering the center.

As NDRRMC head, Ramos saw the worst typhoons to hit the Philippines—Ondoy (Ketsana) in 2009, Sendong (Washi) in 2011 and Pablo (Bopha) in 2012.

In the past three years, he was the public face of government preparations for numerous disasters and weather upheavals, being the source of warnings and updates about them. He also headed all relief, rescue and recovery operations that followed the devastations wrought by the natural calamities.