The final word?

It reminded me of my school days at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) when Dr. Edilberto de Jesus was my professor and I was his student.

Dr. de Jesus is now president of Far Eastern University (FEU) and he was on the other line yesterday.

As I expected, I got an earful.

Dr. de Jesus has written twice to the STAR (both letters were published in the "Feedback" section) on the scalping issue that I initially raised in my column last Oct. 19. In response to his first letter, I wrote a column last Oct. 24 clarifying it was never my intention to disparage the institution he heads.

Dr. de Jesus challenged me to explain my assumptions, which he said were "stupid," in coming up with the P2.16 Million figure that I estimated to be the potential black market pie for the recent University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s seniors basketball game.

I told Dr. de Jesus my assumptions were explained in my Oct. 19 column. Regrettably, he found them absurd. He took issue with my assumption of putting a scalper’s price to what tickets were left for FEU to dispose of after netting out allocations for La Salle, Ateneo, and other member schools. But all I meant to do was to find a way of computing a conservative estimate.

Dr. de Jesus said I failed to consider that tickets sold by the Araneta Coliseum could’ve also found their way into the dirty hands of scalpers. I agreed.

If I considered a portion of the Araneta allocation, the pie would’ve been bigger. Again, my purpose was just to arrive at some figure to drive home the point that scalping is potentially big business and should be addressed as a priority problem to safeguard the paying public or fans.

Dr. de Jesus made me realize my mistake of not consulting with FEU officials before drawing up my "absurd" assumptions. I was remiss on that count and if I were in Dr. de Jesus’ class, I imagine he would’ve flunked me for it.

Dr. de Jesus said that my assumptions made it appear that I accused FEU of selling tickets to scalpers. But I told him I never accused FEU of any wrong-doing. I said so repeatedly in my Oct. 24 column. He said I owed an apology to the institution. I asked Dr. de Jesus what I should apologize for. If there was damage to FEU’s reputation because of my assumptions, then I apologize for it — but I reiterate that my intention was not to smear but to seek a solution to the plague of scalping.

Dr. de Jesus said I should expect a deluge of negative feedback from "livid" alumni and perhaps, a notice from lawyers. I can’t begin to try to convince readers what they think of what I write. Of course, it’s a free country and everyone’s entitled to his or her opinion. My only appeal is for readers to read my column for what it is and not read into what it isn’t.

Before ending our phone conversation, I told Dr. de Jesus that I hope someday, when we bump into each other, we’d be able to talk about basketball like we used to — as fans who love the game.

I also assured Dr. de Jesus that I don’t foist my opinions on others just because "the columnist, who has the protected space in the paper, will inevitably have the last word." It’s not my style to use my column for the last word. While this is my final word on the matter, there will always be space for Dr. de Jesus’ comments here.

I am pained that my crusade against scalping has been misconstrued by some quarters to mean an attack on FEU. I hope this settles the issue.

Postscript. Tom of [email protected] wrote: "It’s time to bring out the whole story of how crooked some UAAP teams can be. A friend of mine was offered by a UAAP school to play for the seniors but only if he went back to high school for a year to train with the juniors. My friend had already graduated high school. Of course, he turned it down"... From [email protected], "Taking things personally is dangerous because it clouds your mind and prevents you from being objective. The issue is plain and simple — prevent the scalping incident that happened during the UAAP championship game. This issue has nothing to do with FEU, eligibility, malpractice in the UAAP and the mere fact that Mr. Henson is a La Salle alumnus" ... Glen of [email protected] asked if there is still a chance for Welcoat to join the PBA next season. That depends on the PBA Board. I understand that if Welcoat’s application isn’t approved for next year, it will no longer be interested to join the pros because several of its key players, including Yancy de Ocampo, are applying in the coming draft... Emil Avinante of 19-D Libertad St., Mandaluyong, wrote: "I wish you talk to former Metropolitan Basketball Association Commissioner Ogie Narvasa because he knows the numbers (how much is spent and earned) and they can be put into a study for future projects"... Olivia Go, a student of St. Jude Catholic School, reacted to our Sept. 14 column on the war against terrorism: "What was before a mere conflict between two nations will become an all-out global war. What about our future? What will happen to all of us if war breaks out? Let us be united in our stand for peace."