By TITO S. TALAO
The question remains: Will the Ateneo Blue Eagles men’s basketball program be suspended from the upcoming UAAP Season 89 in the aftermath of the drowning deaths of two of its players during a team-building activity last June 8?
If it comes to that—depending on the findings of the various investigative bodies looking into the tragedy—who will have the courage to hand down such a difficult verdict?
The UAAP Board, through Executive Director Rebo Saguisag, declared two days after the incident that it was holding off on any action.
The tragedy claimed the lives of 18-year-old Rene Baterbonia and 21-year-old Nigerian student-athlete Divine Adili, who, along with several teammates, were swept into the open sea by strong currents during water exercises in Aurora province.
“For economy and symmetry, we decided to wait,” Saguisag said during a press briefing.
“Right now, I know this sounds… but walang basketball eh. So there is nothing to suspend. So whatever preventive suspension, I don’t know whether or not their institution will do that. It is really based on their prerogative.”
Three weeks have passed, and it appears unlikely that the league board will take that route anytime soon, with UAAP Season 89 still months away.
The UAAP did suspend all Ateneo coaching staff members who were present during the incident in Dipaculao. That decision, however, came after Blue Eagles head coach Tab Baldwin and team manager Epok Quimpo had tendered their resignations.
The fact remains that the UAAP Board still has ample time to act if the evidence ultimately warrants it. But if not the league, who else can bring down the axe?
Perhaps only one other authority can: the Ateneo administration itself.
The university may decide to set an example consistent with its own vision and mission, which calls on its community to “devote their lives to the promotion of service and justice, especially for those who are most in need of help, the poor, and the powerless.”
Whoever ultimately bears that responsibility, justice must be served if the facts point in that direction.
Otherwise, the memories of Rene Baterbonia—whose remains now rest in his native Agusan del Sur—and Divine Adili, whose body has been flown home to Nigeria, risk suffering a second tragedy: one marked not by drowning, but by the lack of accountability.
