Actress Rica Peralejo recently weighed in on the ongoing MaThon controversy involving Maris Racal and Anthony Jennings, expressing empathy for both parties.

In a post on Threads, Rica reflected on her own past experiences, acknowledging the struggles of being young and making mistakes, especially under the public’s scrutiny.

While she did not explicitly take sides, Rica shared her thoughts on the situation, saying, “Hindi ko sinasabing mali sya or tama kung sinuman but that I just know how it feels like to be once young and to do things that might not exactly be favorable in the public eye.”

She admitted that she herself had made mistakes in her youth, and could imagine how difficult it would be to face public judgment if her past were exposed. “I also have done foolish things, and I can just imagine na kung may naglabas nung mga yun at ng totoo kong ugali lalo na if medyo may potensyal na majudge ako ng mga tao, ay siguradong madadown ako kasi wala namang may gusto nun,” Rica added.

The actress also addressed the fact that everyone has both good and bad sides, acknowledging that Maris is facing a particularly tough time due to her fame. “Lahat tayo may mga sides satin na good, bad, etc, and nagkataon lang talaga na sikat sya kaya ang massive nung blow sa kanya,” Rica said. She noted that in some cases, people’s mistakes can be met with public shame, which might serve as a humbling experience. “Kung tutuusin, sa mga kasamaan natin deserve din naman natin mapahiya in that scale, I bet.”

However, Rica was quick to clarify in the comments section that, despite her empathy, she believes that cheating is wrong and should not be excused. She further shared, “Ang dami kong mali sa buhay na nakakarelate talaga ako sa shame ni Maris sa pagkasama kong tao pero nakakarelate din ako na maloko tulad ni Jam [Villanueva].”

The controversy began when Jam exposed screenshots revealing that Anthony had cheated on her, which led to widespread public discussion.