Having said that though, this is a serious accusation--not only made by thai olympic officials, but by the Thai PM himself.
(IIRC, this is the first time the head of an ASEAN country DIRECTLY accused another country of cheating in the SEA Games.)
So instead of just dismissing the Thai's accusations out of hand, we should be conducting a thorough and impartial investigation on these serious accusations to clear the air. And it is something that needs to be dealt with in a credible manner. Because if another participating country followed Thailand and makes similar accusations vs the RP, then this is going to get ugly...
With the all the cheating, stealing and "obstruction of justice" that's going on in this corrupt administration, we need this scandal like we need another hole in the head. It's unfair to our athletes. It's unfair to our country.
We may have a fake president who cheats like crazy, but our athletes are not cheaters.
This attitude from a Malacanang (ex-?) official who posts from time to time in Pinoyexchange is not helpful:
let's appeal to our media to be more circumspect in reporting news so that the international community will not perceive us as a nation of cheaters.
You're saying the media shouldn't report that the friggin Thai PM accused us of cheating? You're calling for censoring the news again?
See, this is the kind of attitude that would rather see us sweep everything under the floor and stick our heads in the sand instead of confronting the problems and all accusations head on.
UPDATE: I said previously:
Because if another participating country followed Thailand and makes similar accusations vs the RP, then this is going to get ugly...
I spoke too soon.
ENGLISH language newspapers in Thailand and Malaysia have cast doubts on officiating and fair play in the 23rd Southeast Asian Games as the Philippines pulled away from the field with a 41-gold medal tally after three days of action....
Malaysia’s New Strait Times, meanwhile, raised the question of "biased judging" after Malaysian World Championships finalists Bryan Lomas and James Sandayud failed to win the gold medal in the 10-m platform synchronized diving event two days ago.
More from Ronnie Nathanielz:
Stop the Bitching
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
BEATEN in events they expected to win, officials from Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, it seems, have joined Vietnam in bitching about biased officiating in favor of the Philippines, which is playing host to the 23rd staging of the Southeast Asian Games, doing our very best despite meager resources.
From the Bangkok Post:
A Vietnamese sports official was the first to raise the alarm over the possibility of the host fixing the results of the Games in a bid to win the country's first overall crown. Nguyen Van Minh, the head of the Vietnamese delegation, made the allegations to reporters two weeks before the Games started.
The cheating accusations have agitated supporters of Arroyo who are busy fending off calls for her resignation over allegations she conspired with an election official to rig the results of the presidential vote last year.
And here's another claim from a Thai Olympic official, from the Malaysian National News Agency:
Newspapers here quoted National Olympic Committee of Thailand (NOCT) vice-president Chaipak Siriwat as saying that Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Brunei were not happy with the standard of refereeing which helped the host to win medals in an "ugly manner".
These accusations are more widespread and serious than I thought.
Lashing out at the accusers is not going to cut it at this point. A serious and credible investigation is imperative and needed to clear the names of our athletes.
UPDATE: Thai official dispute Thai PM's criticism of SEA Games
MANILA, Dec. 1 (Xinhuanet) -- Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) chairman Robert Aventajado said Thursday that two Thai sports officials have apologized over the remarks of Thai Prime Minister Takshin Shinawatra about the alleged unfair officiating in the 23rd Southeast Asian Games.
In an interview with local radio DZMM, Aventajado said the two officials -- Gen. Jaruk Areerajakaran, secretary-general of the Thailand Olympic Committee, and Chaipak Siriwat, vice-president of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand -- believe the Thai leader made the remarks out of a "misunderstanding."
Aventajado said the POC will consult the Department of Foreign Affairs regarding the complaint aired by the Thai prime minister.
He said that Areerajakaran also clarified that the latter made no accusation that the Philippines team has cheated.
"For example he said how can he accuse us of cheating when he did not even visit Bacolod (a southern Philippine city where the boxing matches were held)" said the POC chairman.
It's good for Jaruk Areoiufpoieruqwoeupweoiru to have clarified his statements below, because it looked irresponsible:
Jaruk Areerajakaran, secretary general of Thailand's Olympic Committee, which oversees international competition, complained yesterday that the Philippines had robbed Thai competitors out of victories in several sports, including boxing, gymnastics and taekwondo.
"It is hard to win at the Games since the hosts are cheating," Jaruk told reporters, conceding that the Thai team would not be able to win its targeted 110 to 118 gold medals.
could the reporters have misquoted Jaruk Arellkjvcmlaoqumalkd?
UPDATE: Thai PM and officials should make a public apology
May report na nag-apologize raw ang Thai official dito sa bansa. But I've never seen any direct quote from Jaruk Areerajakaran, secretary-general of the Thailand Olympic Committee, or Chaipak Siriwat, vice president of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand na nag-apologize sila.
Si Robert Aventajado lang ang nagsasabi nyan sa pagkakaalam ko.
MANILA, Dec. 1 (Xinhuanet) -- Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) chairman Robert Aventajado said Thursday that two Thai sports officials have apologized over the remarks of Thai Prime Minister Takshin Shinawatra about the alleged unfair officiating in the 23rd Southeast Asian Games.
In an interview with local radio DZMM, Aventajado said the two officials -- Gen. Jaruk Areerajakaran, secretary-general of the Thailand Olympic Committee, and Chaipak Siriwat, vice-president of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand -- [b]believe the Thai leader made the remarks out of a "misunderstanding."[/b]
Aventajado said the POC will consult the Department of Foreign Affairs regarding the complaint aired by the Thai prime minister.
He said that Areerajakaran also clarified that the latter made no accusation that the Philippines team has cheated.
"For example he said how can he accuse us of cheating when he did not even visit Bacolod (a southern Philippine city where the boxing matches were held)" said the POC chairman.
Here's another article re Aventajado's statement re thai officials apologizing, but no direct quotes from them.
Is this the same Jaruk Areosiuafposid$%^&$ btw who smeared us with this accusation?
Jaruk Areerajakaran, secretary general of Thailand's Olympic Committee, which oversees international competition, complained yesterday that the Philippines had robbed Thai competitors out of victories in several sports, including boxing, gymnastics and taekwondo.
"It is hard to win at the Games since the hosts are cheating," Jaruk told reporters, conceding that the Thai team would not be able to win its targeted 110 to 118 gold medals
So, did all the reporters misquote Jaruk Areeoauipoqiwer? Or they mistook him for another person?
Robert Aventajado claims na how could Jaruk accuse us of cheating when he did not visit Bacolod? As if it is impossible for Thai officials to not make crazy accusations against us if they're not in a specific area during actual competitions.
Exhibit A: The effin Thai PM.
As for Chaipak Siriwat, this is what he said recently:
NOCT vice president Chaipak Siriwat said Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Burma and Brunei were not happy with the standard of the refereeing which helped the hosts win gold medals in an "ugly manner".
He said he would raise the issue at a meeting of SEA Games Council members tomorrow.
"The SEA Games should be for athletes in the region to lift their standards. It should not be about winning gold medals at any cost," said Chaipak.
Only an idiot would not think na pinapatamaan tayo ni Mr. Chaipak.
Robert Aventajado says they have "apologized." But we haven't heard from the Thais themselves. And what did they apologize for? For their PM's outburst? For being entirely wrong re the false accusations? Or for just being "undiplomatic" about it?
I think only a public apology from the Thai Gov't and it's officials will make it right. Or else the thais can get out of the country as soon as the SEA Games are over.
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