The coach is facing charges under Republic Act 7610 for child abuse and exploitation.
: The 2025 Batang Pinoy National Championships were held from October 25 to 31, 2025, in General Santos City.
"I feel like I've been cheated," said one athlete, who wished to remain anonymous. "I was promised a chance to compete at the international level, but it was all just a lie. I don't know if I can ever trust the system again."
: In a separate incident during the 2025 Provincial Athletic Meet, a school official faced backlash for reportedly calling student-athletes "bulok" (rotten), which critics claimed violated DepEd Child Protection Policies .
who loses a classroom, a sports facility, or a chance at a scholarship. The "scandal" is not merely the act of theft, but the theft of opportunity. We cannot expect our youth to embody values like self-discipline and hard work—core tenets of programs like Batang Pinoy—if the systems they look up to are built on deception.
