La Salle is currently under fire after recently admitting that it had fielded two ineligible players in men’s basketball. It is now conducting its own investigation on the matter.
Ricky Palou, who heads the UAAP technical committee, said once La Salle finishes its investigation, it would have to file a formal report to the UAAP board.
"Then if the board is not satisfied, it might be forced to conduct its own investigation," said Palou.
Adamson was found to have fielded an ineligible player in Marlou Aquino in 1994 and as a result was barred from competing in any UAAP event the following year.
"What happened to Adamson can happen to La Salle. It’s possible. But it will really depend on the investigation of La Salle or the UAAP board," he said.
La Salle being found guilty would leave the board with no choice but to vote whether or not La Salle will be suspended for the league’s 69th season.
"It will have to go through a vote," said Palou.
There are eight members in the UAAP board, each one of them representing the participating schools. But in this case, La Salle will not be allowed to vote.
But whether or not La Salle is suspended, the school has already volunteered to return the 2004 trophy it won over the FEU Tamaraws.
News that La Salle had fielded an ineligible player over the last two years broke out last Oct. 12.
School officials have refused to identify the player. But newspaper and Internet reports have openly identified the player as Mark Benitez. Worse, another La Salle player was found to have spurious documents to gain entry into the school and was later named in media reports as Tim Gatchalian. The papers of former key player Mark Cardona are also being verified by the school.
In the course of its investigation, the names of two team officials have also been mentioned as having played a role in the controversy. But they have yet to be identified.
Palou said La Salle should speed up its investigation because the longer it takes, the more speculations are coming out. "That’s what’s happening now and it’s not helping La Salle any. While they have to speed it up, they also have to be very careful because some people might get hurt," Palou added.