Senate sets hearing on UAAP residency row

MANILA, Philippines - The Senate is set to look into a controversial rule of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) which requires a UAAP high school athlete transferring to a different UAAP college to sit out two years of competition before being allowed to play.

Led by the Senate Committee on Youth, Women and Family Relations chaired by Sen. Pia Cayetano, today’s public hearing will tackle the league’s new residency rule and its effects on the youth.

The senator earlier questioned the wisdom behind the league’s new residency rule which has elicited protests from UAAP athletes and fans. 

“The two-year residency rule curtails the freedom of young student athletes to choose the college which he or she wants to study in and play for,” said Cayetano, who played for the University of the Philippines (UP) volleyball team in the UAAP during her college days.

“It denies them of their rights to develop their full potential and goes against the constitutional mandate to promote sports, especially among our youth,” she added.

Among those invited to appear on Monday’s hearing are UAAP board of trustees president Jose Nilo Ocampo and secretary-treasurer Edmundo Baculi. Both are from National University which is hosting the UAAP’s current season (Season 75).

The committee also invited league officials from other UAAP member-schools, including Adamson U, Ateneo, La Salle, FEU, UST and UP.

UAAP seniors basketball cager Kiefer Ravena of Ateneo, high school basketball standout Jerie Marlon Pingoy, and volleyball players Gretchen Ho and Alyssa Valdez, were likewise invited. Ravena, Ho and Valdez were among those who spoke out against the league’s new residency rule. 

Cayetano noted that the US National Collegiate Athletic Association (USNCAA) requires a one-year residency rest for transferring college athletes, but the rule does not apply to high school students who choose to go to a different college.

“The NCAA’s one-year residency is meant to help the athlete acclimatize to the new school and adjust academics-wise. So what is the UAAP’s two-year rule for?” she asked.

“A student-athlete’s choice of university is influenced not only by athletics, but also by academics, campus life, and personal situation. The two-year residency encumbers this freedom of choice.”