By REY C. LACHICA
HANGZHOU, China — A day after the Philippines ended a long and agonizing wait for Asian basketball glory, a bomb was dropped.
In a move that surprised a small group reporters covering the 19th Asian Games, Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino declared war against the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) after claiming he was stabbed at the back.
“We did it as foreseen, as projected and we delivered despite the distraction…local distraction,” said a furious Tolentino, who noted there was no teamwork whatsoever with the PSC officials starting in Day 1 of the continental showpiece.
He did name names but the PSC is headed now by former basketball official Richard Bachmann.
His disgust stemmed from a PSC letter indicating a P10 million unliquidated financial assistance to the Olympic organization for Filipino athletes’ participation in the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games.
“We weren’t even born yet [in 1998],” Tolentino. “Hindi pa ako involved sa POC that time.”
Tolentino was elected interim president in 2018 and officially got the post in 2020, so his frustration was written all over his face.
And who would not be.
The letter, coursed through the PSC’s in-house Commission on Audit (COA) office, was dated September 20 and was given right after the formal flag-raising ceremony at the Asian Games Village – three days before the opening ceremony.
“Why send the letter on September 20? Why not after the closing ceremony? Perhaps October 10 when we have all gone home,” Tolentino told Filipino reporters covering on Saturday, Oct. 7.
“I kept this to myself since the start of the games, but after I reached my goal of four gold medals, I couldn’t keep this to myself any longer,” Tolentino said. “It’s that bad.”
The unliquidated P10 million could be traced back to the term of Cristy Ramos as president of the POC and for the campaign of PH athletes for the Bangkok Asian Games.
The financial assistance for the Bangkok campaign was sourced from the Philippine Amusements and Gaming Corp. but was eventually deducted as the government gaming body’s contribution to the PSC.
Tolentino added that the particular PSC check of P10 million was released only in September 2016, 18 years after the Bangkok games.”
“While we were here on the first day [September 19] and waving the Philippine flag, they sent us the letter with an instruction “to answer within five days” upon receipt,” he said. “Give me one valid reason for the Filipino people on the timing of the sending the letter … Why? To distract us? That’s malicious intent … bad faith.”
