STOP issuing statements to the public.
This was the demand made by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) on the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) and pole vaulter EJ Obiena as it plans to sit down with both parties to resolve their highly public dispute.
The PSC noted in a statement that a series of investigations is now ongoing so the agency advised the two groups to stop issuing public statements, even on social media and hoped that the issue “be handled with confidentiality.”
The Philippine Olympic Committee, including the PATAFA, have already begun their own investigations.
“While we wish for the matter to be handled with confidentiality, we are bound by duty to mediate and call both parties to the table in the interest of truth and arresting the damage this tussle has done on our country’s image in the international sporting world,” the statement read.
The statement also noted that part of the PSC’s mission is to ensure the protection and welfare of national athletes and that any form of financial assistance is properly accounted for.