Tanduay wages battle on two fronts

The Tanduay Rhum Masters fight for dear life on the playing court while Tanduay team owner Lucio "Bong" Tan Jr. fights for his rights on the PBA board room today.

Tanduay seeks the first of two wins it needs to get a playoff crack at the last berth in the PBA All-Filipino Cup quarterfinals as it tangles with corporate rival San Miguel Beer tonight at the Philsports Arena.

Earlier on the day, Tan has a scheduled meeting at the Commissioner’s Office although it’s doubtful whether the Tanduay top honcho will sit down with commissioner Jun Bernardino to talk on his reported tirade against the league and the commissioner himself.

A Tanduay source said the ballclub may send somebody on behalf of Tan to attend the meeting called by the commissioner also to tackle the technical foul assessed on the young team owner in their last game versus Pop Cola.

The same source said Tan is willing to submit himself only to a summon by the league board of governors and not by the commissioner whom he accused of unfair treatment to his team.

Under one specific provision in the league by-laws, Bernardino said he has the right to summon a league governor provided he gets the majority approval of the board. Bernardino said he got seven affirmative answers from eight board members he polled, excluding Tan and board chairman Ignatius Yenko.

Bernardino is expected to impose a heavy fine on Tan on his verbal attack on the Commissioner’s Office which came out in some major dailies.

On the alleged salary cap violation by Tanduay, Bernardino confirmed an earlier report by The STAR that "there is something that has to be pursued" based on the documents submitted to his office by for Tanduay player Jayvee Gayoso.

"From what we have, there is substantial evidence that merits further investigation," said Bernardino during the PSA Forum at the Holiday Inn Manila.

Gayoso furnished the PBA with papers, including bank statements, that indicated the team broke the cap.

Bernardino reiterated that should Tanduay be found guilty, the ballclub will lose its TV revenue for the year. For the record, the league earns P200 million in TV revenue this year — the amount to be divided among the 10 ballclubs.

Amidst all these problems, the Rhum Masters fight for survival as they play the Beermen at 7:30 p.m. tonight. Red Bull hopes to stay in the fight for a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals as it takes on Sta. Lucia Realty in the 5:15 p.m. curtain-raiser.

The Tanduay-San Miguel tussle could become an emotional game with Tan pointing to the Beermen as the team enjoying much blessings from the Commissioner’s Office. In fact, Tan even branded the PBA as a "San Miguel league."