Sports

MANILA, Philippines - Cristy Ramos, daughter of former President Fidel V. Ramos, expressed disgust over the Philippine Football Federation’s verdict (PFF) clearing the two Azkal players she accused of “sexual harassment.”

In an interview on News5, Cristy Ramos said that the decision means only one thing - "they don’t care about the behavior and character of the players. I’m truly disappointed and disgusted with the decision".

According to Ramos the disciplinary committee didn't have at least one female member. She also higlighted that the PFF has a disciplinary committee but they don’t have the ethics committee or the appeals committee.

However, contrary to Cristy's claim, PFF has an avenue where she can appeal the dismissal of sexual harassment charges against Azkals members Lexton Moy and Angel Guirado. Lawyer Gregorio Larrazabal wrote on Twitter that PFF actually has an Appeals Committee, which he heads.

Philippine Football Federation Discipline Committee (PFFDC) dismissed the sexual charges for lack of evidence. The committee found no grounds for the complaints but due to “breakdown in discipline”, the Philippine National Football Team are sanctioned. Guirado and Moy got one-game suspensions each, as did James Younghusband. Coach Michael Weiss and team manager Dan Palami were removed for two games each while assistant coach Edzel Bracamonte was suspended for one match for “failure in leadership.”

With the suspensions, the Azkals will be short of players for the upcoming international friendly games in Cambodia (Sept. 5), Singapore (Sept. 7), and Laos (Sept. 10).

Team Manager Dan Palami is preparing an appeal for the suspensions.

Ramos on the other hand said that through her complaint, she also wants to clear the image of the Azkals, who represent the country in international competitions.

Source: Philstar, InterAksyon.com