The good and the bad news

By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

FIRST the good news.

I  would like to extend my congratulations to Team YMCA Dagupan  for bagging five golds, two silvers and six bronze medals in the KDA Manila Invitational Karate Championships held last July 29 at Pasig City.  Cheers to Jimko Alcantara, Richard Manantan, Dan Kurt Vidal, Gerard Martin Tamayo and Michelle Collado for snatching the golds; Jayson Ramil Macaalay and David Rosario for winning the silvers; John Enrico Vasquez, Celina Koleen Juguilon, Joan Maverick Edralin, Fernandine de Asis, Jona Reyes and Kim Rivera for reaping the bronzes. Mabuhay kayo!

I recall that despite the size of Team Dagupan during the 2005 Palaro, Dagupan garnered more medals than the entire province Pangasinan.

What a humiliation for the second largest province of the country. Something went terribly wrong.

Kudos also to Mangatarem wonder boy Haridas Pascua for showing a phenomenal performance during the 2007 World Under-16 Chess Olympiad held at Singapore, racking up three consecutive victories, defeating Jonathan Rosenethal of Switzerland, Subin Sen of England and H.L. Rapuachchi of Sri Lanka, and S. Nitin of India.

Like what I said in this corner, this Pangasinense chess whiz kid will go places.  And I believe he’ll get his grandmaster status in the near future and will be the first Pangasinense to do so.

I doff my hat to Sen. Miguel Zubiri for initiating a bill in Congress changing our national sport called “sepa” to “arnis.”

I can see the logic in his move because we are the creator of this sport, unlike sepa which was created under the consolidation of four countries including Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand.

History also reminds us that during the early Filipino uprisings against Spain, our ancestors used bolo (tabak or itak) and a sturdy stick of wood-now called arnis in sports-against the swords, guns and cannons of the invaders.

I hope the bill will be approved by both houses.

There’s also a bill filed by Manny Pacquiao’s political conqueror in the 1st District of South Cotabato, Rep. Darlene Antonino Custodio, seeking to grant a P15,000 monthly pension to former Filipino world boxing champions once they reach the age of 50. This bill, if passed into a law, would benefit Pacquiao himself when he gets old and also the ex-boxers who have been incapacitated in line with their chosen career.

I wish beneficiaries will include not only the boxers but also former world champions in other sports like bowling, billards, taekwondo, weightlifting, to name a few. I hope the lawmakers will consider other sports wherein our countrymen have excelled in.

Now the bad news.

It was really shocking and saddening when Atty. Emmanuel “Noli” Eala resigned from his post as the commissioner of PBA after his disbarment by the Supreme Court as a lawyer, brought about by his extra marital affair with a married woman.

Faced with imminent ouster from the league’s board of governors, the beleaguered commissioner said he didn’t want to involve the PBA in his personal predicaments to keep the prestigious play-for-pay league’s dignity intact.

Now I wish San Fabian-born Chito Narvasa will be chosen by the board to replace Eala.

PBA’s board in 2002 voted Eala to replace Jun Bernardino and became the league’s sixth commissioner after beating Narvasa.

After Narvasa, my second choice is former Sen. Robert Jaworski or PBL’s Chino Trinidad.

I hope, too, that PBA’s woes hitherto will not diminish its social status and reestablish itself through its powerful marketing and publicity machine.

Remember, we placed ninth and failed in the recently concluded FIBA-Asia Olympic Qualifying Championship using PBA superstars before the Eala hull.

I guess these two monumental oddities will largely affect PBA’s image as far as fans and attendance of games are concerned.

But these wounds will be healed in just a short time. After all, basketball is still the numero uno sport of the Filipinos.

(For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/sports-eye/)

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