No ‘Filoil’ for Eagles; UAAP up in air

MANILA, Philippines — Ateneo de Manila U has pulled out of the Filoil Preseason Cup while the UAAP is maintaining it is to fully take into account the findings of the government agencies on the tragic death of Ateneo players Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili in Dipaculao, Aurora.

“The Executive Committee of the 19th Filoil EcoOil Preseason Cup has been informed of Ateneo’s decision to withdraw from competing for the remainder of the tournament,” said Filoil.

The Preseason Cup serves as the warmup tourney for majority of the Metro Manila school teams for the upcoming UAAP and NCAA seasons.

Ateneo’s fate in the UAAP, however, is still up in the air as the league yesterday announced that it will wait for the conclusion of all the ongoing government investigations.

“The UAAP will fully take into account the findings of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the Philippine National Police–Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the concerned member school, as only limited details have been officially confirmed,” said the UAAP.

“We urge all concerned agencies to conduct a speedy and thorough investigation in order to put all speculations to rest.”

The UAAP, however, assured that it will take actions, including sanctions in “cases where there are breaches of established protocols, laws, and regulations, provided these sanctions are established through due process and in accordance with governance and disciplinary procedures.”