Court to hear sex harassment case vs ex-TV exec, producer

MANILA, Philippines — ABS-CBN show biz reporter Gretchen Fullido is ready for the trial of the sexual harassment case she filed against a former news executive and a segment producer of the TV network, her lawyer said yesterday.

The Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 32 is expected to soon hear the complaint for sexual harassment against former integrated news department ecosystem head Cheryl Favila and segment producer Maricar Asprec.

Cesar Jimenea, lawyer for Fullido, said his client is prepared to “undergo the rigors of trial.”

 “She is getting ready the best way she can, learning how to calm down and temper apprehensions in exposing her personal life. This is what sexual harassment case is all about,” Jimenea said in an e-mail sent to The STAR.

Jimenea said Fullido would take the witness stand.

 “There came a point when she needed to report the harassment to the network management because it was affecting her job and the way she dealt with her colleagues. She could not keep silent anymore and bear the pain. ABS-CBN said there was no sexual harassment so she was prompted to file a legal complaint,” Jimenea explained.

“We hope that other victims of harassment will be inspired by what happened to Gretchen and file their own complaints,”he added.

The Quezon City prosecutor’s office has indicted Favila and Asprec after finding probable cause in the complaint filed by Fullido last year.

While the sexual harassment case against Favila was dismissed by ABS-CBN, the network management fired her in April last year after she violated the company’s Code of Conduct and the Labor Code.