By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman William “Butch” Ramirez is currently disappointed about the circulating issue regarding a UAAP basketball team that violated pandemic safety protocols just to hold their practice bubble.
A few days ago, reports surfaced about a men’s varsity squad belonging to a Catholic school that went to Sorsogon to conduct their secret practices despite strict safety protocols issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Upon hearing the incident, PSC chief Ramirez expressed his dismay concerning the school and the reason why they did it in a time of crisis.
“Does winning always mean everything else takes second place? Are we so focused on winning that we are ready to compromise important matters like the safety of the youth we are supposed to guide?” said Ramirez.
Ramirez dug deep into sports values and how the mentality of always winning can eat it up and turn it into a negative perspective.
Despite the ongoing pandemic, Ramirez could not get the point of the University of Santo Tomas’ Growling Tigers men’s practice bubble in Sorsogon.
The allegations thrown at UST was already discussed by Ramirez and his board but decided to put the matter into the hands of the UAAP.
“The PSC recognizes the authority of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) on this member-team, and we are giving them the chance to clarify matters internally,” said Ramirez.
