The alleged assault by Leyte 4th District Representative Richard Gomez on Philippine Fencing Association (PFA) President Rene Gacuma could serve as grounds for an ethics complaint, House Committee on Public Accounts Chairperson and Bicol Saro Representative Terry Ridon said.
Gacuma claimed that Gomez hit him on the nape at a sporting venue hosting fencing matches during the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand.
The PFA President sent a letter detailing the incident to Dr. Raul Canlas, Chef d’Mission of the Philippine SEA Games delegation. Copies of the complaint are also set to be submitted to the Ethics Committee of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and the House of Representatives.
“It impinges on the reputation and dignity of the House when its members behave this way,” Ridon said. “This kind of act — striking an older person or anyone — wasn’t done by House members before.”
The incident reportedly followed the PFA’s decision to replace fencer Alexa Larrazabal from the Philippine fencing team. The association cited decreased attendance and other concerns despite Larrazabal’s strong performance in national tryouts.
In a statement, Gomez said the move to remove Larrazabal had a “huge impact on individual players and eventually proved damaging to the Philippines’ results in Individual Women’s Épée.”
Gomez questioned the PFA President’s “last-minute” decision to replace the country’s “best women’s épée player” with the third-ranked fencer. He noted that Larrazabal still competed in the team event, where she was assigned as the anchor.
Larrazabal, along with Gomez’s daughter Juliana, Ivy Claire Dinoy, and Hanniel Abella, helped the team secure a bronze medal in the women’s team épée event.
