Puentevella hits out at politics, funding issues in Philippine sports
MANILA — The post-mortem of the recently concluded 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, brought alleged issues surrounding funding and the lack of support for athletes to the table for discussion.
This came after Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas (SWP) president Monico Puentevella voiced his frustrations during a committee hearing of the Committee on Sports, chaired by Senator Christopher Lawrence Go.
Puentevella recalled statements made by Alas Pilipinas Men’s volleyball team captain Bryan Bagunas regarding the lack of support for some Philippine athletes.
“Yung viral ni Bagunas, karamdaman yun ng mga atleta dito. Mabuti sinabi niya yun, para malaman ng bayan na talagang may kakulangan din sa mga atleta,” explained Puentevella, president of SWP.
He clarified that while this may be true, it is not necessarily the case for everyone.
“Pero, liwanagin natin hindi sa lahat ng atleta. Kasi kami nanalo kami ng gold sa olympics sa Tokyo, hindi kilala ang weight lifting. Bale wala kami, pero tinulungan kami ng Philippine Sports Commission,” said Puentevella.
The issue at hand, he claimed, is the alleged politics surrounding Philippine sports.
“Ang sports commission hindi dapat ang tirahin, ang pulitika dito saan pa kaya, Senador? Ang pulitika sa volleyball, Philippine Olympic Committee diyan ang nakialam,” he added.
Puentevella also pointed to the infrastructure at the New Clark City Sports Complex in Capas, Tarlac, raising it in the discussion on the state of support for athletes.
“Una nating unahin yung atleta hindi yung infrastructure. Maraming white elephant ngayon sa Clark, bilyon, bilyon. Sinong gumagamit nun? Swimming pool, track and field oval, sinong gumagamit nun?” Puentevella explained.
Go, however, was quick to respond, saying that the facilities are actually in use.
“Meron tayong eskwelahan sa New Clark City, National Academy of Sports kung saan pupwede na mag-aral at the same time mag-training ang student athletes,” explained Senator Go
Senator Pia Cayetano, on the other hand, explained why, she claimed, supporting athletes nowadays is becoming more difficult.
“If you come to me and tell me to amend the budget to include a bigger fund, I will be scared, because government today haunts you, persecutes you, when you invest in athletes,” said Cayetano.
Go reiterated from the start of the hearing that athletes should supposedly no longer have to worry about their funding and other necessary logistics, as they should be focusing mainly on their training while representing the country.