The mother of Rene Clert Baterbonia is still in the dark, demanding some clarity on what really happened in the tragic teambuilding accident that led to his untimely death in Dipaculao, Aurora last Monday.
In a news briefing, Rovelyn Baterbonia bared that Ateneo de Manila University officials and two men’s basketball coaches showed up in her son’s wake at the Arlington Memorial Chapel in Quezon City to extend their condolences to their family on Wednesday.
But no concrete — and logical — explanation was given.
“We talked earlier, they said that what happened was this but I felt that something was missing from their explanation but I will wait for the statement of other coaches to explain to me what really happened,” said Rovelyn, who is still grieving over the tragic loss of her son due to a drowning incident.
She didn’t reveal the names of the coaches but they told her that the tragedy happened around 2:40 p.m. while her son was rescued only 30 minutes later.
An Ateneo official later informed her that her son passed away at 4:30 p.m. He, however, did not send her any photos or videos to put closure and prove that her son had really died of the tragedy.
The elder Baterbonia questioned the wisdom of the basketball squad officials, headed by head coach Tab Baldwin, as they still pushed through with the teambuilding activities despite the tsunami warning raised all over the archipelago due to the strong earthquake that hit Mindanao a few hours prior.
“Why did they go through with the teambuilding or training even though they were advised that there was an earthquake, that there may be a possibility for big waves, but they said they checked and there was nothing so they proceeded,” she said.
Aside from the two coaches, members of the Blue Eagles also showed up to pay their respects on their fallen teammate. Members of the University of Santo Tomas basketball squad were also there, but their head coach Manu Iñigo begged off from issuing any statement.
The Kiwi-American Baldwin, however, has yet to visit.
Rovelyn added that the school staff stressed that at the time the players began their training at the shoreline, there was no sign of massive waves. They also clarified that there was no truth to the online speculation that there were ankle weights attached on their legs during the activity.
The coaches further maintained that what happened was an accident, a development that she did not necessarily disagree with but felt could have been easily avoided.
“I told them, what happened was an accident because of your negligence because you went there but you did not have a rescuer, they had a medic but only for first aid,” the elder Baterbonia said, adding that filing criminal charges has yet to cross her mind as she wants to stay focused on bringing the remains of her son to Agusan del Sur.