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| courtesy of freepik.com |
Stakeholders in Philippine sports are in a wait-and-see attitude. The next Philippine president traditionally determines the state of sports in the country for the next 6 years. And with the presidential election still to happen in May, uncertainty prevails over Philippine sports.
The fact that Philippine sports is highly politicized stems from the fact that Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) is directly under the Office of the President. The PSC Chairman and all the PSC Commissioners are presidential appointees. Being presidential appointees gives these sports officials the feeling that they can get away with anything and everything. That the president will cover for them. And this is primarily the reason why these sports officials often dare to involve themselves in highly anomalous transactions and activities. These sports officials dare to enrich themselves while occupying a government position because the president will come to their rescue once their activities are exposed.
Rio Olympics are merely 5 months away. But not one Filipino athlete has gained qualification to the Games so far. This comes as no surprise as President Noynoy Aquino has left sports in the hands of his uncle, Philippine Olympic President Peping Cojuangco, who for more than a decade has done nothing for Philippine sports.
The next Philippine president must really have the heart for sports for Philippine sports to take off. The next Philippine president must prioritize sports to be able to produce generations of great athletes once again. The next Philippine president must be an athlete himself or herself.
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