By Mark Rey Montejo and Reynald Magallon
No term can fully capture the anguish of a mother mourning the death of her son.
Yet despite the immeasurable grief, Rovelyn Baterbonia is finding the strength to fight for answers and seek justice following the tragic death of her son, Rene Clert Baterbonia, in a drowning incident during the Ateneo men’s basketball team’s team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora.
Still struggling to come to terms with the loss, Rovelyn arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport terminal 2, with the assistance of Agusan del Sur Governor Santiago “Santi” Barriga Cane Jr., in hopes of finding answers to the sudden death of her son.
The 19-year-old Baterbonia as well as 21-year-old Divine Adili died after getting swept away by the waves into the deeper waters, according to a police report.
“Iyon po ang malaking tanong ko bakit napunta doon sa dagat kasi basketball naman yung anak ko hindi naman swimming,” the grieving Rovelyn.
“Masakit. Sobrang support ko mula bata ahanggang ngayon tapos ginanun nila. Kung alam ko lang na may training sila na ganyan kahit mahirap kami di ko ipapahamak ang nak ko kaya ngayon gusto ko ng justice talaga kung anong nangyari sa anak ko,” she added
What makes the tragedy even more painful, according to Rovelyn, is the lack of information she has received about her son’s fate.
She revealed that she has yet to see a photo or video of Rene’s body, leaving her grappling with questions no mother should ever have to ask.
“Hindi ko pa nakita ang katawan ng anak ko. Hanggang ngayon wala pang picture o video na binigay sa akin. Totoo na ba talaga na wala na ang anak ko? Wala rin naman akong authorization na mag-post kayo,” Rovelyn said.
“[Pinag-fiestahan] na ang anak ko wala kayong respeto sa aming pamilya na hanggang ngayon wala pa talagang binigay na balita sa totoong nangyari at kong nasaan na ang anak kong si Rene Clert Baterbonia at bakit na umabot sa ganon,” she added.
PSC forms panel
The Philippines Sports Commission announced that it is forming a fact-finding panel that will look into the tragic drowning of the two Ateneo players
In a statement on Tuesday, June 9, the PSC said it is convening a sports stakeholders’ panel that will support the efforts of the Philippine National Police and the Department of Justices in hopes of shedding light on what really transpired during the incident.
The panel, according to the PSC, will be composed of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP), the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the National Youth Commission (NYC), which will also be tasked to examine existing policies, protocols, and training practices resolutions to strengthen safeguards in athletic training environments.
“The goal is not only to understand what happened, but to ensure that lessons learned lead to safer, more responsive systems that protect athletes while sustaining high-performance sport,” the PSC said in the statement.
“Excellence in sport requires environments that push human potential, but never at the expense of safety,” it added.
The formation of the fact-finding panel came following calls for deeper investigation on the incident especially after old interviews of former Ateneo players resurfaced indicating the nature of the annual training done by the Ateneo men’s basketball team in Aurora.
