EJ Obiena's mother reveals shelling out P600K for son's training allowance

EJ Obiena's mom Jeanette turned emotional on Monday as she revealed her son's struggles while training abroad.

In a Senate inquiry about the ongoing rift between her son and the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA), Jeanette said that at one point, she shelled out P600,000 to help with her son's living conditions overseas.

"Ang totoo po nito ay nag-abono po ako ng P600,000 para sa anak ko dahil noong panahon na iyon, nag-follow up po ako sa PATAFA tungkol sa training allowance ni EJ. Noong panahong iyon, nasabi po sa akin, sa pagkakaalala ko... wala pa pong pondo ang PATAFA," she said.

"Di ko lang po maalala kung sino sa kanila ang nagsabi na kung pupuwedeng abonohan ko muna ang training allowance niya tutal meron namang pong ipina-process sa PSC para sa reimbursement," she added.

She said EJ was then living with 2016 Rio Olympic gold medalist Thiago Braz, who also trains with his coach, Vitaliy Petrov.

"Noong panahong po 'yun, nakapag-usap po kasi kami ni EJ. Nasabi po sa 'kin ni EJ na wala po siyang pambayad at siya po ay nakikitira lang kay Thiago Braz," Jeanette said.

"Para po kahit papano di nakakahiya kay Thiago, naglilinis po si EJ sa bakuran nila. Naggugupit po siya ng damo, naglilinis ng bahay, naghuhugas ng plato para di po nakakahiya kay Thiago dahil nakikitira po siya at that time," she added.

Jeanette said she borrowed money and added her savings and her husband's to somehow help EJ.

"Bilang magulang po, hindi ko po matanggap na ang anak ko na nasa ibang bansa, nag-iisa at di mo po malaman kung may titirahan at may kakainin. 'Yun po ang nangyari doon," she said.

Jeanette also admitted that the issues surrounding her son have affected their family, with her husband having breakdowns and sessions with a psychologist.

In the hearing, Obiena reiterated his previous points made to the public about PATAFA's allegations on misuse of funds.

First, he said that he paid his coach, although he admits that it was not always on time; he did not abuse the PATAFA and Philippine Sports Commission's liquidation process; and he did not forge Petrov's signatures in the latter's contracts and acknowledgment receipts.

PATAFA, meanwhile, maintained that the investigation on the liquidation of funds was "nothing personal."

"It all started with a report and it is our duty as part of our stewardship to do something about it. Dapat ba what I should have done when I received the report was just to keep quiet and buried under the rug? What about those documents? What will happen to them? Eh di pati ako sabit. So we have to look into this," PATAFA President Philip Juico said.

In the same hearing, both the camps of Obiena and PATAFA eventually agreed to enter into mediation to be handled by the Philippine Sports Commission.

—MGP, GMA News