Jail corrupt sportsmen
For the past several years, the mystery surrounding the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee Foundation Inc. remained unsolved.
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For the past several years, the mystery surrounding the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee Foundation Inc. remained unsolved.
The fifth State of the Nation Address (SoNA) that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivered last Monday was quite telling.
Before discussing the accomplishments of his administration in key sectors, the Chief Executive declared that he will go hard at corrupt public officials — even if they are political allies or members of his family.
In fact, the Office of the Ombudsman had already started its investigation of his own cousin, former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, over the multibillion-peso flood control scandal.
The President’s words were music to the ears of Filipino sports fans.
For the past several years, the mystery surrounding the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee Foundation Inc. (Phisgoc) remained unsolved. From ranking sports executives down to the athletes, coaches, and volunteers, everybody wanted to know how the estimated P10 billion of public and private funds was spent during the country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games.
Although Phisgoc executives said they had already liquidated the SEA Games expenses with the Commission on Audit and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) still saw the need to assemble Task Force Cash Cow to look into possible anomalies in the purely private entity that offered to handle and manage billions of pesos of government funds.
Corruption in sports is nothing new. Crooked sports executives made money from the procurement of sports equipment and supplies, security and janitorial services, and the construction of substandard sports facilities like swimming pools, track ovals, bleachers, and even dormitories.
Even lowly PSC employees were slapped with several counts of qualified theft, attempted qualified theft, cyber-related forgery, and computer-related fraud for embezzling at least P14 million from August 2015 to May 2020 through a payroll padding scheme.
Sports leagues were also not spared from corruption. Aside from the usual game-fixing and point-shaving in basketball matches, some sports executives were also alleged to have pocketed the funds of their organization.
The controversy even reached the NBI when league officials filed qualified theft against the sports executives for their failure to cooperate and address the internal audit and financial inquiries regarding league funds.
The professional league eventually collapsed, costing the players, coaches, and team staff their livelihood.
You see, for every centavo Philippine sports loses to corruption, there is an athlete who suffers.
The stolen money, after all, could have been spent for something more meaningful like the construction of state-of-the-art sports facilities, gymnasiums and stadiums, the purchase of modern sports equipment, or payment for world-class coaches, therapists, team doctors and trainers.
That’s why there’s a pressing need to dig deep into the controversy surrounding Phisgoc.
Seeing corrupt sports officials behind bars at the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas is the most powerful statement that President Marcos can send to this sports-loving nation. It will show that his leadership is determined to protect the vulnerable and enforce accountability — regardless of how powerful the perpetrators might be.
When public funds given to private organizing foundations are spent without proper liquidation or a transparent public bidding, it sends a message that impunity reigns. Eradicating these unscrupulous practices through actual prison terms will surely scare off rogue sports officials, paving the way for genuine, athletes-first leaders.
President Marcos has the whistle in his hand. By blowing it on corrupt sports officials and allowing Task Force Cash Cow to investigate without any political pressure that will eventually lead to convictions, he will execute the total reset Philippine sports has desperately needed for decades.
It is time to jail the corrupt, clean up the sector, and ensure that our athletes will finally win. If he can hold his political allies and family members accountable for various corruption scandals, he can definitely do it to corrupt executives who are taking advantage of the Filipinos’ love and passion for sports.
Please jail these corrupt sportsmen, Mr. President. The sports-loving Filipinos are counting on you.
