Angping to WAP raps: All lies

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Sports Commission chairman Harry Angping yesterday branded as lies all the charges and allegations being hurled against him by a group representing the Wrestling Association of the Philippines.

“It’s full of lies,” said Angping a day after the group, headed by WAP vice president and former SEA Games gold medalist Marcus Valda, staged a lightning protest inside the Philippine Sports Commission compound.

They charged Angping of malversation of public funds resulting from the country’s hosting of the Asian Junior Wrestling Championships last July. But the PSC chief said there’s just no basis for the charges.

Angping said it’s the WAP that owes the PSC money, and not the other way around. His legal counsel, Paul de Vega, said they will answer the charges point by point, in the proper time, in the proper forum.

Rallying behind Valda were unfamiliar faces, including a barker who looked like a veteran of many street protests, and one who even had to ask the names of those he introduced as the next speaker.

Albert Balde, WAP president, joined the rally, along with women’s billiards champion Rubilen Amit and a group of young cyclists who said they belong to the national pool.

“Basically it’s just the wrestling group,” said Angping in the process of cleansing the government sports agency and looking for ways how to make the lives of the national athletes worth living.

“It’s truly sad,” said Angping, who has unprecedented plans of increasing the allowances of performing national athletes from P15,000 a month to as much as P25,000 or even P50,000 starting next year.

Last week, he also announced that gold medalists in the coming SEA Games in Laos will receive an additional P100,000 from the PSC, on top of the P100,000 they will get from the national government.

Dr. Aparicio Mequi, a former PSC chairman, rallied behind Angping, saying, “The chairman should be not intimidated by the demos. He’s doing right for not allowing junketing athletes and officials to go to the SEAG. If they deserve to go, no need to rally and demonstrate.”

Mequi said it’s the first time that a PSC chairman “had the guts to impose discipline on undeserving athletes and NSAs (national sports associations).”

Angping is batting for a smaller RP delegation to the Laos SEA Games. He said only 130 athletes are qualified to join the games based on their current performance, but nonetheless he agreed to fund 153 after a meeting with chef de mission Mario Tanchangco last week.

The Philippine Olympic Committee has another list of 213 athletes for Laos, and Go Teng Kok, the special assistant to POC president Jose Cojuangco, said they have the money to spend on the athletes not included in the list approved by the PSC for funding.

Triathlon president Tom Carrasco said Angping continues to enjoy the support of the majority, and should move on.

“He has nothing to worry. Majority of the NSAs are still behind him. I can guarantee that. It’s just black propaganda on their part,” he said.