Scoring a landmark decision in the Supreme Court is one thing, but its actual implementation is another.
Former Pampanga Congressman Joseller “Yeng” Guiao yesterday said that he wants to see the actual execution of the Supreme Court ruling ordering the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) to remit the full share of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) in accordance to the law.
Guiao, also the Rain or Shine coach in the Philippine Basketball Association, said the landmark decision of the Supreme Court should not be treated as a mere “moral victory” as the extra funding that would be derived from the revenues of PAGCOR and PCSO would be a major boost to the training and participation of Filipino athletes in major international tournaments.
“We don’t want this to turn into a moral victory,” said Guiao, who was accompanied by his lawyer in Atty. Avelino Guzman Jr. during the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum on Tuesday at the conference hall of the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
“Legally and morally, we’re standing on solid grounds. The bulk of the job is already there.”
Guzman added the Supreme Court decision should be converted into additional funding for the government’s funding arm for sports.
“We don’t want this decision to become a paper judgement. What we need is to see the actual funds going into the PSC,” added Guzman during the session presented by San Miguel Corporation, PSC, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, Smart/PLDT, and the country’s 24/7 sports app ArenaPlus.
“So, what we need to do is to monitor this decision thoroughly because as far as we’re concerned, we’ve already done the hardest part of the job.”
Based on the Republic Act 6847 that created the PSC in 1990, PAGCOR stands to remit five percent of its monthly gross revenue while the PCSO has to hand 30 percent of the charity fund from the sweepstakes and lottery draws to the PSC to fund its national sports development fund.
But PAGCOR remised on its obligation and is just remitting 2.14 percent while the PCSO also failed to hand over 30 percent of its charity fund as well starting 1993 on the strength of an executive order from the Office of the President handed down during the time of President Fidel Ramos.
PAGCOR insisted that the PSC’s five percent share was still subject to deductions, taking into account the five percent franchise tax, 50 percent share of the national government, and 10 percent subsidy to the National Power Corporation.
PCSO also argued that PSC’s share comes from sweepstakes draws — not lotto games.
With funds coming in trickles, the PSC had a hard time supporting the around 1,600 athletes from almost 80 national sports associations, leading to a dip in their performances in the international arena until the private sector took a more active role in funding the athletes.
But in a landmark decision last week, the Supreme Court mandated both PAGCOR and PCSO to release the appropriate budget allocation to the PSC for eight years since Guiao, then vice chairman of the House Committee on Youth and Sports, filed the petition.
Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen penned the decision that was heard en banc by the 15-man Supreme Court, none among them inhibited themselves from the petition.
Under the rules, according to Guzman, both PAGCOR and PCSO can no longer appeal the decision, but have 15 days to file a motion for reconsideration.
As of Tuesday, the two government agencies have yet to make their move.
Based on his estimate, Guiao said the PSC could get as much as P25 billion in funds following this legal victory.
“I think it will go up to P25 billion,” said Guiao, who considers the decision as the most consequential event since the creation of the PSC in 1990.
Guiao, the lone petitioner in the case, stressed that such a huge amount of budget could help the establishment of sports complexes around the country and fund the training and campaign of Filipino athletes for years to come.
“It’s nice to hear and imagine. But the ones who should benefit in this decision are the athletes. It’s okay if they forget about us, but at least we contributed something to the next generation of athletes,” said Guiao of this huge contribution he and his lawyer provided for Philippine sports.
“The ones who should benefit from this are our country, our athletes and the sports program at the grassroots level.”
