POC, PSC on collision course?

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) is calling for a special meeting tomorrow to discuss the ramifications of Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Harry Angping’s recent declaration that the government agency will phase out support for Filipino and Fil-foreign athletes abroad.

Philippine Amateur Swimming Association (PASA) president and POC executive board member Mark Joseph yesterday described Angping’s pronouncement as “discriminatory.” He pointed to Florida-based Filipino swimmer Ryan Arabejo, a triple 2007 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games gold medalist, as the first victim of Angping’s clampdown and appealed for reconsideration.

Arabejo, 19, represented the country in the 1,500-meter freestyle event at the Beijing Olympics last year and is enrolled at Bolles School in Jacksonville, an Olympic training center, on an academic scholarship. Joseph said the PSC has withheld releasing funds for his training, board, meals and competition fees. If the fees are not settled by March 5, Arabejo will be sent back to Manila and prevented from graduating.

Joseph said a PSC Board resolution was approved to provide for Arabejo’s funding before Angping took over as chairman from Butch Ramirez.

“If the PSC refuses to remit Ryan’s funding, he cannot finish high school and will lose the four-year university scholarship lined up for him in the US to provide the education, training and competition he needs to swim in the 2012 and even the 2016 Olympics,” said Joseph who stressed that Arabejo is a “homegrown” athlete from Barangay Pembo in Makati.

Joseph said the POC will galvanize a unified position, as mandated by the Olympic charter, to fight discrimination of any kind against athletes.

Instead of spending for costly Filipino and Fil-foreign athletes abroad, Angping said the PSC will focus on developing local talents for the national team. The implication is the PSC will get involved in grassroots development.

To start the ball rolling, Angping recently created a PSC Aquatic Sports Task Force “to recruit, train, develop, supervise and carry out projects and programs and execute the same.” Under Angping’s directive, the PSC will fully and completely support the Task Force, which is to be accountable directly to him. There is no PASA participation in the effort.

Named as chairman of the Task Force was Dr. Ramon Ricardo Roque. Angping appointed Asian Games veterans Atty. Ma. Luz Arzaga-Mendoza and Susan Papa as co-chairs.

Joseph insisted that the creation of the Task Force is “a violation of Sections 11 and 13 of R. A. 6847, otherwise known as the PSC Law, because the purposes by which this ‘Task Force’ has been created are already functions of our NSA (National Sports Association) under the Olympic charter, PASA and FINA (International Swimming Federation) Constitutions and R. A. 6847.

“Chairman Angping has formed his own personal Task Force to find 50 talented swimmers from Sulu to send to Xiamen for training. But Filipino talent isn’t that hard to find. We’ve already done it.”

Joseph said former national trackster Jim Apelar has reported widespread negative feedback on Angping’s declaration from Filipinos abroad. Apelar runs a clearing-house of overseas, natural-born Filipino athletes whose patriotic parents spend willingly for their children to represent the Philippines in international competitions.

“It seems like a class action lawsuit in the making,” said Apelar. “I paid for the plane fares of our beach volleyball players (Heidi Ilustre and Diane Pascua) in 2005 so it didn’t cost PSC anything for them to represent the Philippines. Will this (policy) derail the SBP’s plan of naturalizing an athlete to become competitive in basketball?

“We are Filipinos by law, whether we live in the Philippines or abroad. If we qualify based on criteria, can we be discriminated from the national team? The negative backlash will reverberate all over the global Pinoy world and will cost the Philippines more than protecting the turf of the many failed and lethargic government sports programs.”

Joseph said since taking over as PASA president in 2005, the NSA’s books have been in order. But unliquidated expenses from the four previous presidents dating back to 1990 prevent the PSC from extending support directly to PASA. As a result, Joseph explained he had to seek out sponsors.

“Our sponsors are happy with our results,” he said. “We qualified the most number of Olympians last year with five swimmers and two divers and brought home nearly 25 percent of all the gold medals the Philippines won in the last SEA Games.”

Because PASA’s window to the PSC is closed, Joseph admitted going directly to Pagcor for assistance. Pagcor recently issued a certification that PASA has completely and properly liquidated all funds it received as of last Dec. 31.

“We are an NSA that is doing its job, minding its own business and is not a burden on the PSC but rather, a well-managed NSA with a strategic plan, programs, utilizing the latest technologies for teaching and competing in aquatic sports,” said Joseph. “More importantly, we are not financially dependent on the PSC. But as a matter of right, we will fight to ensure that our swimmers and coaches get what is due them from the PSC because of their performance.”