Despite his frequent visits to Malacanang recently, Commissioner Ramon Fernandez yesterday quelled rumors that he is being groomed to replace William “Butch” Ramirez as chairman of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

Fernandez said there’s no reason to rock the PSC boat as he remains loyal to Ramirez, who is serving a 90-day preventive suspension after the Office of the Ombudsman found probable cause on the graft charges filed against him in 2008.

Ramirez’s suspension started last May 15 and will run up to mid-August—at the height of the country’s participation in the 18th Asian Games in Jakarta—due to an alleged faulty security contract.

Before formally serving his suspension, Ramirez appointed commissioner Arnold Agustin as caretaker to make sure the smooth run of the agency.

PSC insiders, however, revealed that Malacanang would soon name an acting chairman to possess the same power as the PSC chairman and relegate Agustin back to his old post.

The source said it’s going to be Fernandez.

“The Asian Games is approaching and the suspension of chairman Ramirez should not affect the participation of the national team,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity for lack of authority to speak on the matter.

“That’s why Malacanang is set to name an officer-in-charge any time soon. I know it’s not yet cast in stone, but from what I heard, it’s going to be commissioner Fernandez.”

Fernandez confirmed the source’s claim, but refused to speculate whether he will bag the appointment.

Instead, he stressed that he’s standing by Ramirez and they will welcome him once he returns from his preventive suspension.

“We have yet to receive the order, but I was told that the Palace will designate an acting chairman,” he said following his back-to-back visit to Malacanang to attend to another matter.

“But the OIC will serve only until Ramirez comes back. We want Chairman Ramirez to be back because he’s doing great as PSC chairman. We work together efficiently as a team.”

With Ramirez out and Agustin as the caretaker, Merlita Ibay was appointed as executive director while Guillermo Iroy acts as her deputy.

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