Blue Eggless

Blue Eggless | Daily Tribune

Ateneo is also notable for imposing its administration’s political ideology upon its students. Even in law school, where future members of the Bar are supposed to be trained in independent thinking, its professors practically brainwash its impressionable barristers-to-be into a misguided social liberal mindset. No wonder that — although considered one of the country’s top universities — it is at the bottom 500 of the world’s best one thousand. A lousy ranking, to be sure.

And why not? Aside from fostering a rigidly political teaching regimen, it also practices the doctrine of “do as I say, not as I do.” Nowhere is this more evident than its actions in the face of the unqualified tragedy that befell two of its athletic recruits: Rene Baterbonia of Davao and Nigerian Divine Adili.

The (supposed) circumstances surrounding the deaths have been talked to death, and this writer will no longer delve into them pending any definitive determination of facts and liability by a court, since conclusions regarding the same will be conjectural at best. What is not conjectural is the deplorable manner by which the Ateneo, as an institution, and by extension its agents, handled the situation.

Instead of defusing a highly emotionally-charged state of affairs by humbly fessing up and making amends, it did everything that is the opposite of transparency and accountability.

First of all, the head coach (Baldwin) made himself scarce and snubbed a police subpoena. Then everyone lawyered up: Baldwin, the school, even the players who were only supposed to be witnesses.

Far be it for me to condemn the role of lawyers, but the situation was far from legally adversarial. Baldwin did eventually show up at the presinto (so to speak), but only after intense public opinion pressured him to do so and after a sudden review of his employment status as an alien.

Then the handwashing started. Ateneo claimed the team-building activity was not officially sanctioned. Afterwards, the school blamed everyone: the medics, the police, the seas, politicians. Even the victims themselves, who (it was strongly insinuated) were adults after all and went into the training with eyes wide open.

Baldwin and some school officials apologized, but it was an empty and idle exercise, crocodile tears without any admission of guilt. No wonder the word “switik” had its etymology in “Jesuita.”

Promising lives were nipped in the bud. But like many disasters in our ningas cogon country, after the initial brouhaha, this one also threatens to disappear without a trace below the waves.

Such is the lot of the poor against rich and powerful institutions. Especially when Ateneo shouts “accountability” but refuses to grow a pair and face up to its own. A case of the Jesuit institution being Blue Eggless.