Palami apologizes to Ramos, will launch inquiry

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine men’s football team, whose two players, Angel Guirado and Lexton Moy, have been accused of sexual harassment by Cristy Ramos, yesterday apologized to the Asian Football Confederation match commissioner for the incident prior to the friendly against Malaysia.

Azkals manager Dan Palami made the apology in behalf of the team, which is now in Kathmandu, Nepal, preparing for the AFC Challenge Cup kicking off March 9.

“I sincerely apologize to Commissioner Ramos for the distress this situation has caused her,” Palami said in a statement.

Ramos, a former president of the Philippine Olympic Committee and national women’s football standout, is an experienced match commissioner, who has held posts in the women’s committee of the AFC and Fifa.

Palami said the team is not taking the incident lightly, adding that “if it is proven that there was in fact malicious intent, I will make sure that proper sanctions are meted out.”

In her complaint filed before the AFC Disciplinary Committee, Ramos alleged that Moy disrespected her during the prematch inspection inside the dugout at the Rizal Memorial Stadium when he spoke about the size of her bra, which elicited laughter from the team.

“It deeply saddens me to hear about the very serious allegation,” Moy said on his Twitter account. “This sensitive situation will be addressed professionally and respectfully.”

Ramos also alleged that Guirado appeared before her half-naked during the prematch inspection—another misconduct.

“We will promptly investigate this incident,” Palami said. “Like Commissioner Ramos, I also believe that sexual harassment should not be tolerated in any situation.”