Kagaya ng kanilang ginawa sa basketball, pupulungin rin nina PLDT chairman Manny V. Pangilinan at senior vice-president for human resources ang mga boxing stakeholders.
“Magkakaroon kami ng national congress sa December at itataon namin ‘yon sa National Open sa Bacolod City,” ani Vargas, ang bagong pangulo ng Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP). “We have to get everybody together and the best way to get everybody together is in Bacolod.”
Sa pagluklok kay Vargas bilang presidente ng boxing association, inilagay naman si Pangilinan bilang chairman, habang bumaba sa pagiging vice-president si Manny T. Lopez.
Sina Pangilinan at Vargas rin ang magkatuwang sa pamamalakad sa Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) bilang president at chairman naman, ayon sa pagkakasunod.
“I am a collegial person. I go out and listen to all stakeholders. We have to own this program because not one of us has all the ideas and everything that we can do in this sport,” wika ni Vargas. “We have to get all the stakeholders involve para may commitment sila sa program. They have to own it and be part of it.”
Sa halos 30 taon na pangangasiwa ng mag-amang Mel at Manny Lopez sa ABAP, wala pa ring nasusuntok na kauna-unahang Olympic gold medal ang mga Filipino pugs.
“The stakeholders have to sit down and talk about this and sit down again and talk again,” ani Cebu boxing patron Tony Aldeguer. “It’s easy to point out the flaws but a program as huge as the whole national program needs to be studied, researched, analyzed. It’s not as simple as people think.”
Ang programa patungo sa 2012 Olympic Games sa London ang siyang nasa pangunahing agenda nina Pangilinan at Vargas sa ABAP. (Russell Cadayona)