Where are we going?

By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

MANY top leaders of our national sports associations are always at loggerheads on a number of issues ranging from power struggle, exploitation, selection of players, and maltreatment of our national athletes. I believe this is one of the main reasons why our athletes’ performances in their overseas stints are lackadaisical. The records speak.

Four years ago, our amateur basketball leaders found themselves in a monumental imbroglio and the controversy reached the attention of the world governing body, Federation of International Basketball (FIBA). Consequently, because of the brouhaha caused by these egoistic leaders, FIBA suspended our national delegation from any international competition sanctioned by it until our domestic problems were resolved. It was a power struggle among the national basketball top honchos. It was a ‘big deal’ for them given that basketball is the numero uno sport of the Filipinos and so big money was involved.

The suspension led to the Philippines without any entry in the 2005 Southeast Asia (SEA) Games which we hosted. Nakakahiya ‘ika  nga.

When the contentious issues were finally resolved in 2006, the suspension was lifted and Philippines regained the SEA Games crown in 2007.

Early this year, a good number of our national cyclists took the limelight when they accused their coach, Jomel Lorenzo, for maltreatment. They also accused some board directors of the national governing body PhilCycling for hugely overpricing some bicycle paraphernalia yet supplied them with sub-standard gadgets for use both in their training and competitions. Their sentiments, grievances and allegations were even aired on TV.

The case is now pending with the Ombudsman.

Nakakahiya na naman po, hindi po ba?

Then came the protest of our national pool players also early this year. They complained about the alleged unfair treatment and irregularities committed by the billiards body, the Billards and Snookers Congress of the Philippines (BSCP), chaired by Yen Makabenta.

Disgusted with the leadership of Makabenta, billiards icons Efren “Bata” Reyes, Federico “Django” Bustamante, Alex Pagulayan and Ronnie Alcano and businessman Aristeo Puyat to name a few, formed a breakaway group and named it Billiards Managers Players Associations of the Philippines (BMPAP). The group accused BSCP of being “incompetent” and whose only aim was “to make money out of the players.”

The case has now reached the Senate sports committee chaired by Senator Lito Lapid.

And late last month, it was the turn of our national swimmers to take their aim at their boss, Mark Joseph, the interim president of the Philippine Amateur Swimming Association (PASA).

The group, which includes their parents, coaches and representatives, is asking the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) headed by Jose Cojuangco to help implement a policy calling for elections both in the regional and national level. This rule is based on an agreement reached in 2005 after a leadership feud was resolved involving then president Monchito Ilagan, who eventually agreed to install Joseph as “temporary” head.

Joseph now denies there was such an agreement and claims he was elected in 2006 for a four-year term. The group said this is not true and now refuses to recognize the embattled Joseph as the president of PASA.

The case is now in the hands of Cojuangco.

These wars between our sports leaders and athletes are the main causes of our debacle in competitions. It’s really demoralizing.

Over the last two years, our country has been a big failure in sports. We are the second most thickly populated country in Southeast Asia, next to Indonesia, but we are being badly beaten by small countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and even Vietnam which was devastated by war during the early 70’s.

And the question is, where are we going now? If these differences are not solved, we are headed for the cellar in international competitions. That’s for sure.

Only our professional boxers spearheaded by Manny Pacquiao are lifting us.

Think about it.

(Readers may reach columnist at biking.jess@yahoo.com. For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/sports-eye/
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