PSC to probe erring athletics coaches

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Sports Commission will give “suspended” athletics coaches Joseph Sy and Roselyn Hamero a chance to air their side and defend themselves against accusations they have neglected their duties as national mentors.

PSC chairman Richie Garcia, who met with Sy and Hamero and Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association (Patafa) secretary general Ben Silva-Netto yesterday, agreed to form a committee that will hear the case of Sy and Hamero.

The PSC, upon the recommendation of commissioner Jolly Gomez, had earlier dropped Sy and Hamero from the payroll due to alleged absences during their wards’ training and “falsification of records,” among others.

“We will convene a committee hopefully within the week and have a hearing, maybe starting Monday, for them to convince the committee about their explanation,” Garcia said after emerging from the two-hour meeting.

While agreeing to hold hearings, the PSC will continue to suspend the release of allowances to Sy and Hamero.  The two receives P20,000 a month from PSC.

“The committee will hear their (coaches’) answers, detailed explanations, and they will recommend to the board their findings,” Garcia said, adding that the board will still have the final say on the fate of the two.

Sy and Hamero welcomed the hearings.

“Hindi naman yung allowance ang habol namin, it’s more on our reputation as coaches. Hiling lang namin magkaroon ng due process, mabigyan ng pagkakataon na makapag-explain at ma-refute ang allegations sa amin (We’re not really after the reinstatement of the allowance; it’s more about defending our reputations as coaches, of being given  due process and the chance to refute the allegations against us),” said Sy.

Sy explained that they were performing admin work at the Patafa office while president Go Teng Kok was sick but they were attending training in Baguio every now and then. As to the alleged falsification of records of one the athletes, Hamero claimed it was merely “clerical error.”

Garcia, meanwhile, defended the PSC’s  sanctions on what it perceived are “erring coaches.”