Crucial Hong Kong Meet: Peping brings BAP case to FIBA

Philippine Olympic Committee president Jose "Peping" Cojuangco left for Hong Kong yesterday morning, met with FIBA (International Basketball Federation) president Carl Menky Ching and tackled the POC move calling for the suspension of the Basketball Association of the Philippines.

Cojuangco left for the British Colony at 7 a.m. and was scheduled to fly back to Manila at 7 p.m. He was accompanied by POC chairman Robert Aventajado, ways and means committee head Go Teng Kok, legal counsel Ding Tanjuatco and media affairs chief Joey Romasanta.

Cojuangco and company reportedly called on the FIBA president in his downtown office and presented the high-ranking basketball official an "executive summary" of all the events and circumstances leading to the POC recommendation of suspension for the BAP headed by Tiny Literal.

Cojuangco last Tuesday recommended to the POC General Assembly the "immediate and indefinite" suspension of the BAP for its failure to honor an agreement with the country’s major stakeholders in basketball on the formation of the RP team to the forthcoming SEABA championship in Singapore and SEA Games in Manila.

The General Assembly will convene tomorrow. A two-thirds vote or 26 of 39 votes are needed for Cojuangco’s recommendation to be ratified. If that happens, the BAP will be stricken out of the POC roster and will lose all the privileges granted a member .

Cojuangco also paid a courtesy call on Timothy Fok Tsun Ting, president of the Hong Kong Olympic Committee and vice president of the Olympic Council of Asia. The meeting was arranged by the FIBA president.