Former POC legal counsel Atty. Victor (Toto) Africa recently sent a letter to Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez suggesting that in appointing the next PSC chairman, President Marcos may consider what the candidates’ position is regarding a National Philosophy on Sports (NPS) and evaluate their response as a determinant in the selection process.
There is nothing conclusive on who are the candidates but the scuttlebutt is outgoing Chairman Butch Ramirez is an option for retention with PSC commissioner Ramon Fernandez, former PBA commissioner Noli Eala, POC chief legal counsel Atty. Wharton Chan and Pilipinas Obstacle Course Sports Federation president Atty. Al Agra the others in the list.
“The Constitution dreams of the total development of citizens through sports,” wrote Africa, a former Philippine Fencing Association president, in his letter. “It is respectfully submitted that the new PSC chairman and commissioners lead the way to its realization if they did profess, exhibit and continue to profess and exhibit their unwavering commitment to help bring about the Constitutional dream. The NPS must be identified and then verbalized to everyone interested and involved in Philippine sports so we will all ‘march to the beat of just one drummer.’”
Africa said two questions beg to be answered: What the candidates believe to be the primary objective and purpose of sports. How the candidates relate the objective and purpose to the Constitutional expectation from sports which is “the development of a healthy and alert citizenry.”
Africa said the NPS should inspire the country towards excellence. “We in the sports community should always do our best,” he said. “Sports points us towards the competitive cooperation in the common pursuit of mutual excellence. Sports prepares us for life. Sports is life and it expects nothing less than the ‘pursuit of excellence.’”
Stressing the importance of verbalizing a vision to crystallize the NPS, Africa said it is what binds a united Philippine team. “The NPS will answer the question why the country is into sports, why the country allocates its resources – people, funds, facilities – in sports and why the country invites the sports community to join in and support the national sports development program,” he noted. “The NPS will identify the reason for the nation’s attention to sports and its involvement in sports activities and programs. Similar to what one’s personal philosophy on sports does for an individual, the NPS will be the lighthouse, beacon, blueprint, compass that will guide the government in its sports activities and programs – that the sports community will cooperate with, participate in and support. It will clarify the roles of the participants: athletes, coaches, administrators, media and fans as well as the relationships between and among them. Sports is truly a national movement and it is founded on the NPS.”
Africa said sports is a requisite part of the holistic development of man and everything leads to the NPS as the galvanizing element of the sports community. “We need the NPS as the step towards the creation of a culture of sports excellence,” he added. “The NPS will define for us what sports excellence is. It will, in fact, define us. Now is the appropriate time to think about our NPS. We must be one in our NPS and in flourishing it. We must be one in giving it life.”