Leyte 4th District Representative Richard Gomez is under fire over a collapsed flood control structure in Matag-ob town and a series of election-related controversies, but now, media rights advocates say the lawmaker’s response to scrutiny may pose an even greater threat to press freedom.
The flood control project, inaugurated during the 2025 campaign season, caved in during heavy rains earlier this month.
Matag-ob Mayor Bernie Tacoy blamed Gomez’s camp for rushing the project without proper permits or coordination, calling it “a failure of governance.”
Gomez dismissed the criticism, saying Tacoy was simply “riding on this season’s most interesting subject matter.”
But the controversy deepened when Gomez lashed out at journalists seeking his side of the story.
In a Facebook post, he accused reporters of orchestrating a “media spin” against him and published screenshots of their messages—including names and contact numbers—to his 774,000 followers.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) swiftly condemned the move. “Claiming media bias and spin to avoid answering questions will only go so far,” the NUJP said in a statement.
“The requests give him a chance to address allegations made by Mayor Tacoy, and making them is part of journalists’ jobs. If Gomez preferred not to speak, a simple ‘no comment’ would have sufficed—without imputing malice or exposing our colleagues’ private information.”
The NUJP also warned that Gomez’s post may constitute a violation of data privacy laws and could expose journalists to harassment and fraud.
This incident adds to a growing list of controversies surrounding Gomez. Palompon Mayor Ramon Oñate filed a disqualification case against him for allegedly spreading false information during the campaign. Matag-ob Councilor Jose Yap also accused Gomez of premature campaigning and inflammatory rhetoric, including labeling rival Vicente Veloso a “drug protector.”
As calls mount for independent audits and ethics investigations, advocacy groups say the issue is no longer just about infrastructure—it’s about accountability, press freedom, and the integrity of public discourse. (RRN)
