Challengers snatch reins

Metro Manila’s premier country club may be entering a new chapter following the surprise victory of a new board of directors.

Sources told Nosy Tarsee that of the five seats up for election, four were won by challengers to the current regime — including three individuals with close ties to one of the country’s largest conglomerates, as well as a social entrepreneur known perhaps for her marriage to a famous media personality.

The fifth seat went to an individual reportedly backed by the previous administration, a sibling of two of the government’s most prominent law enforcement officials. The new slate’s fifth candidate, himself a government appointee, narrowly lost.

The change in leadership of the country’s premier polo club began with purported internal disagreements over renovations to the club’s decades-old infrastructure. Nosy Tarsee heard from trusted sources that allegations of corruption had permeated the project.

The initiative in question is a multi-year renewal of more than 20,000 square meters on the western side of its premises, which has been in development for more than five years — and its own July 2026 project document puts close to P1 billion in total value.

The club said the renovations will be financed with its own coffers, rather than by taking on debt or increasing membership dues.

Nosy Tarsee heard the proposed renovations to its five-decade-old tennis courts also drew the ire of many members due to the “exorbitant” cost, with some noting the project was being pushed forward before obtaining the requisite approval that they believed was required from the broader membership, adding fuel to the fire of corruption allegations.

The organization has stressed that its vast renovation initiative predates the current board, attributing the different stages to five different administrations, not just the outgoing one.

Snoops said the outgoing and new regimes each have well-known backers — the former reportedly backed by a government official whose reputation has fallen into disrepute as of late, while the latter is backed by a prominent business tycoon.