Panel starts work on cage body

The shot-clock is on.

The three-man panel composed of Manny V. Pangilinan, Joey Lina and Bernie Atienza will buckle down to work today as they begin drafting the constitution and by-laws for a new, united basketball association in the country.

The meeting, which starts at 8 a.m. at the Tower Club in Makati, will be the first since the composition of the three-man panel, tasked to oversee the cleansing process for Philippine basketball in general, was finalized the other day.

Lina, president of the Basketball Association of the Philippines, and Atienza, head of Pilipinas Basketball, were joined in the panel by MVP, the sports-minded chairman of PLDT and Smart, and believed to be the key to a united front.

The meeting will not last the whole day, but a lot of positive things will be laid down the table.

The panel has more than three weeks to draft and finalize the constitution of the soon-to-be-formed association that may end up being called United Philippine Basketball.

Pangilinan’s entry into the scene was hailed as a big step toward achieving lasting peace between the warring factions in local basketball. The BAP and PB, whose long, bitter dispute led to the FIBA suspension on the Philippines, will both have to fold up in favor of a new group.

Both BAP and PB have their own constitution and by-laws, and the panel could work on this and try to gather everything that could be used in the formation of a new one. Because of this, the panel does not have to literally start from scratch.

The drafting of the new constitution and by-laws will be based on a democratic, country-wide and mass-based representation of the various sectors of basketball — sectoral, commercial, school-based and professional.

The panel will also have until the end of the month to call for an election of officers; review, verify and validate the list of members submitted by the BAP and PB; and convene the National Congress of the united organization and to oversee the election process.

Then by the end of the day, everything will be presented to the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and for the lifting of the suspension, and possibly a Philippine participation in the basketball competition of the Doha Asian Games this December.

Top officials from FIBA are watching the ongoing developments in Philippine basketball with a keen eye.

Ricky Vargas, chairman of the Philippine Basketball Association and board representative of the PLDT-Smart franchise in the pro league, the other day said Pangilinan, better known as MVP, will be with the group only in its "formative stages."

But there are those who believe that it’s better for Pangilinan to take the lead once the new group is formed, and later on recognized by the Philippine Olympic Committee and FIBA.

Rep. Monico Puentevella, the POC vice president, is one of them.

"To unify we need a new man not from either of the two sides in contention — the BAP and PB. MVP can sacrifice some time for the good of our national sport," said Puentevella.