THE Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) ratified the executive board’s early decision against Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) President Philip Ella Juico, officially declaring him persona non grata during the first General Assembly of the year on Wednesday at the Grandmaster Hotel in Tagaytay City.

A total of 54 regular national sports associations (NSAs) attended the GA and then 36 voted yes including athletes’ commission member and Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz of weightlifting and swimmer Jessie Lacuna to Juico’s persona non grata’s tag.

They favored the executive board’s decision on the complaint filed by Olympic pole vaulter Ernest John “EJ” Obiena against Juico for harassing a world-class Filipino athlete by making malicious public accusations against him last November.

Eleven NSAs were a “no vote,” meaning they didn’t sign the notion, while five NSAs led by weightlifting president Monico Puentevella, wushu, squash, athletics and hockey opposed the motion.

Three others—International Olympic Committee Representative to the Philippines Mikee Cojuangco Jaworski, dancesports and netball—abstained.

“We are just following the procedure and there’s nothing personal here against Mr. Juico, and anytime EJ (Obiena) and Juico agreed or EJ withdraws his complaint, the GA can revisit the executive board’s decision,” POC President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino told an online news conference after the GA.

Tolentino reiterated that Juico will stay as athletics president “for other matters but no longer recognized by the POC,” clarifying that PATAFA “could still function as NSA under the national Olympic committee.”

“He is still the PATAFA president for other matters without recognizing him, but they still have their vice president and secretary general who can attend POC activities,” Tolentino said, noting that the GA doesn’t need a full majority vote since they are not suspending or ousting Juico as PATAFA president.

“We do not need a ¾ or 2/3 vote because we’re not ousting and suspending him as president. We are only declaring him as persona non grata but still, 36 is 2/3 votes of the POC,” he explained.

Diaz said she and Lacuna expressed the vote of the Athletes’ Commission.

Earlier, the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) insisted that mediationis still the best option to settle the dispute between Juico and Obiena.

The statement by the PSC came after Obiena formally declined to participate in the proceedings.

The PSC said it has already received communication from Obiena’s camp through his lawyer via email that the Tokyo Olympian “will no longer participate in the mediation proceedings.”

The government sports agency, however, still believes that “mediation is still the best option to resolve this matter.”

PATAFA had earlier signed the mediation agreement two weeks ago withJuico, Atty. Aldrin Cabiles and Alfonso Sta. Clara set to represent in the process.

While Obiena believes in the mediation process and trusted PSC chairman Butch Ramirez to handle the matter well, the 26-year-old national record holder said entering the said proceedings with PATAFA “is a recipe for failure.”

“PATAFA was in bad faith the whole time as they signed the mediation with their true intention to still pursue the filing of a baseless criminal case of estafa against me,” Obiena said in a written statement.

The PSC said its accounting office and the Commission on Audit shall proceed with their normal post-audit process of checking the liquidation documents that Obiena submitted last Jan. 21.