Atty. Estenzo
Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (CESAFI) Board Member & Legal Adviser, Attorney Baldomero C. Estenzo, who has withdraw himself as member of the BAP-SBP Board of Trustee for the simple reason that the present management of Manuel Pangilinan has no quorum to represent the BAP-SBP organization as provided in the Constitution & By-Laws of the Charter as stated in writing below: (January 14, 2010)
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LETTER TO FIBA DATED 20 JULY 2009 (Cong. Luis R. Villafuerte)
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Graham C. Lim (left) and Patrick Baumann (right)
Photo taken by Ramon "Bong" Boado
The sequence of our conversation last January 19, 2009
Between BAP SecGen Graham C. Lim and FIBA SecGen Patrick Baumann
Published on February 3, 2009
Here under are the contents of the correspondence.
“To recall, you made an apology before our talks. At first instance, it was something that I had to accept with a grain of salt since I still had doubts about your sincerity and real intention. My instincts told me that you were trying to lower my guard, if not convince me to stop criticizing you.
I opened up on two important matters – one was personal and the other regarding the Bangkok Agreement, of which were among the signatories.
I informed you of the various events that had transpired in 2005 when you unilaterally suspended the BAP. Back then, I said it was illegal. However, you refused to accept any explanation. Then again, your subsequent investigation showed that it was improper for the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) to have expelled the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) because it was politically motivated.
Still, you did not lift the suspension. I told you very frankly that your action was illegal and could result in the destruction of the BAP.
To refresh your memory, you sent to Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) a letter dated August 30, 2005, which read as follows: "FIBA's conclusion is that the suspension was the appropriate means to react to the BAP's failure to comply with the agreement allegedly reached between the parties. On the other hand, though, FIBA's current conclusion is that the expulsion is inappropriate and out of proportion. In particular, it is not understandable why the new leadership of BAP in the person of its President Mr. Jose “Joey” Lina was not given sufficient time to adjust to the POC requirements after the suspension.
In fact, the sequence of events rather demonstrates that the suspension was a manoeuvre to reach the expulsion of the BAP and the integration of the opposing personalities under the PBFI. FIBA's opinion is that it is inappropriate to use basketball as a sport-political game between opposing sides.
As a consequence, FIBA cannot accept the POC's decision to remove one group in favor of another one. As a consequence of our position on the matter, it is impossible for FIBA to entertain your request for affiliation of the PBFI, dated July 29, 2005."
Your Memorandum of Understanding with the POC in September 2005 was another mistake. Why? That's because you yourself signed the MOA. That agreement cannot hold water legally since it was struck with a party that is not a FIBA member.
You should have protected the rights of the BAP as it has been a FIBA member since 1936. For why else are you being paid handsomely if you do not work for the benefit of a FIBA member? Why favor the POC when the POC is an organization that is not affiliated with the FIBA?
Your decision is ridiculous and stupid. Coming it is from a person who claims he's a lawyer makes it very hilarious.
In our conversation, you admitted that you made a mistake. And I told you that mistake can be rectified.
The time to rectify the error is NOW. And you better do something to bring back the BAP to the good graces of the FIBA. If not, then the fight continues.
I personally told you that I will be fighting until my last breath for what is right, fair and just. And you told me that I should instead wage my war against the POC. You yourself signed the MOA and started this whole problem. The BAP was the victim here.
A genuine leader does not pass the buck. The buck stops at your doorstep. It's only right that you yourself finish it NOW by renouncing the MOA.
Remember it was you who suspended the BAP in July 2005. The BAP's Christian Tan and Senator Joey Lina pleaded with you not to suspend the BAP but you hardheadedly decided to do only what pleased you, the POC and its cohort, the fledgling Pilipinas Basketball (or the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas), for financial and other considerations.
This is an act of betrayal and treason against the BAP. Somehow, you deserve all the brickbats that you are getting now for you are just reaping the whirlwind.
You claimed that you were simply pressuring the POC to reinstate the BAP. Yet, in the end, it was the BAP that has suffered a lot due to your gimmickry. And you now admit of wrongdoing.
The past is past, you now tell me. No, it is not. I say that what is happening today to the BAP is the consequence of your mistake.
If only in the past you had been the attentive person that you were when we talked in Kuala Lumpur recently, perhaps all these problems would have been avoided.
I cursed you so often because you never wanted to listen to our side and you even accused us of abusing the name FIBA. What right do you have to say that when the BAP has been associated with the FIBA since 1936.
Look at yourself in the mirror to see who is abusing the FIBA.
You are simply an employee of the FIBA. Your salary comes from the FIBA coffers. You are not – and will never ever be – the FIBA.
The BAP-SBP election on June 4, 2008 has all the elements of legitimacy. It was held in accordance to the Bangkok Agreement, which was struck on Feb. 4, 2007 with you as a signatory.
Elected were Congressman Luis Villafuerte and the Honorable Prospero Pichay as the BAP-SBP Chairman and President, respectively.
As a reminder, the POC had nothing to do – and will always have nothing to do – with the FIBA and the Bangkok Agreement.
The fraudulent election of moneyed businessman Manuel Pangilinan on June 12, 2008 has been exposed and basketball-loving Filipinos now are asking how much money changed hands between you and Pangilinan.
If, indeed, you were paid handsomely to recognize Pangilinan's bogus election, then you are really a shame to the FIBA family.
On the issue of the validation of membership in the BAP-SBP, the BAP faction controls the majority in the committee level and has 80 approved members eligible to vote for a new set of officials on the basis of the Bangkok Agreement.
To refresh your memory, the BAP-SBP legal counsel told you in a loud voice during the drafting of the Bangkok Agreement, "You are the cause of all these problems!" What a mess, remember!
The SBP faction is having its way these days only because they said that you are part of the devious scheme to recognize Pangilinan's election in exchange for marketing favor and financial considerations.
However, just don't expect the BAP to accept its fate without a fight. We demand justice and we are sure it will be served sometime in the future.
In a previous correspondence, the Philippines' athletic Chief Go Teng Kok sent you a strong-worded letter that accuses you of mismanagement of the FIBA and
enticement, expressing his utter disappointment and horror over the decision of the FIBA to unseat me from FIBA Youth Commission.
That letter was sent to you dated May 22, 2008. Mr. Go Teng Kok said: “"It is clear to me that Mr. Lim's relief was made on the say so of pseudo-Filipino basketball leaders who grovel to FIBA to preserve business interests rather than the pristine welfare of the sport. The absence of due process in this instant case diminishes if not eradicate the hope of fair play which is the heart of our involvement in sports.
To think that this is how FIBA, one of the largest sports organizations, resolves issues even makes it more unpalatable."
“It is imperative of you to rectify now the mistakes you have committed. Otherwise, I have every reason to doubt your sincerity.
And in case you want to know beforehand, we may file a case against the FIBA in the Court of Arbitration in Sports (CAS) if that is the only way to obtain justice.
It is really up to you if you want to further drag the FIBA down the river because of your incompetence and lack of fair play.
We will also be plotting other courses of action in the future if you don't mend your ways and recognize the results of the June 4, 2008 election.
During our talks in Kuala Lumpur, I ask you this candid question – Are you a Christian? You didn't answer immediately. Then I said you must be a Christian.
For no matter how good or bad a person has been, I believe there's some goodness in everyone's heart.”
Yet I wondered aloud why all these years you refused to listen or communicate with the BAP. I begged you a number of times through letters, but each time you did not answer. Even when we bumped to each other in some FIBA events, you ignored me.
I asked you why your heart is so hardened, why you are lacking in compassion. Begging is not my really my style. But being a practicing Christian, I know how to humble myself.
In your worst and most irritating act of all, you even disregarded the resolution approved by the FIBA Asia Congress to lift the suspension of BAP during a June 2006 meeting held in Kuwait. Despite the endorsement by the FIBA Asia Congress, you still did not take up the issue during the FIBA World Congress.
Instead, you accommodated the representatives of the POC and Pilipinas Basketball, both of which were never part of the FIBA family. As anyone could tell, you never had the intention to respect the advice of the FIBA Asia Congress advised and instead went on to make your own ill-willed judgment to disrespect the members of FIBA Asia.
Think about your actions. We will never accept your authoritarian rule and that is why I got so many supporters and admirers from all over the world for what I am fighting for – that is to stop your abuse of power and tyrannical rule in the FIBA.
Shamelessly, you tried to stop me from entering China and asked the Chinese government not to issue a visa to me. But till now, you continue to deny this accusation of mine. It's regrettable for you to hypocritically say that this information came directly from the Chinese government. This is another human rights violation.
Of course, I don't believe you at all. But then again, I am comforted by the dictum that liars and cheaters often go together.
You even tried to kick me out as a member of the FIBA Asia Executive Committee. Again, you issued a denial. And again, I say that I don't believe you.
When you put me to shame by dismissing me from the FIBA Youth Commission, I asked you, a lawyer, to respect the universal law of due process and give me my day in court. You accused me of being a troublemaker yet you never gave me a copy of the complaint, if any, and mention who my accusers were, again if any.
Before that, you even mailed a letter to the then-BAP-SBP executive director informing him that you are going to deal with me. The nerve of you to say that, Patrick! And like a scorned woman, the next thing you did was to unilaterally remove me from the FIBA Youth Commission.
You are really a heartless person and disrespectful of human rights. Decency dictates that I know beforehand the charges against me. But you chose to try me through publicity and expose me to public ridicule because of the write-ups in the local media.
During our talks in Kuala Lumpur, you once again denied these things really happened. At this point, I would have wanted to end our conversation because you, being Mr. Denial, was just wasting my time and becoming an unbearable nuisance.
I accused you of being a racist because you cracked a joke at my expense, of my being a Chinese (what's wrong with being a Chinese anyway?), during a visit to Geneva in November 2007 for a FIBA Youth Commission meeting, you said you had forgotten the joke, perhaps then I should refresh your memory. During my arrival in the meeting, you shamed me in front of many people by making fun of my being a Chinese with a questionable document.
Again, you denied this issue. If that were the case, how would I take your apology then?
The Manuel Pangilinan group wants to change the name "BAP-SBP" to "SBP" only. They have already sent you a letter notifying its intention to change the name. However, until now, you continue to deny this information. Despite your innocent looks, I know you are lying.
I already knew that you already had made an arrangement with Noli Eala to recognize just the SBP, and not the BAP-SBP.
I know that you and Eala are in good terms. I'd like to believe that birds of the same feather flock together. Eala, of course, is a disbarred lawyer who has been convicted by the Philippine Supreme Court for cohabiting with another man’s wife.
During the signing of the Bangkok Agreement, Eala was described by Hagop Khajirian (the FIBA Asia marketing guy) as a "snake."
I and sure you know by heart what despicable marketing fraud that Eala had committed during the 16th FIBA Asia Champions Cup when he failed to fulfill his guarantee of a US$50,000 payment to the FIBA Asia marketing group. As the host of the Champions Cup, the BAP suffered losses amounting to several million pesos.
Despite this tragedy of Eala's making, the BAP did not gain any compassion from FIBA Asia even if it did its best to provide FIBA Asia every opportunity to make thousands of dollars through its television and marketing revenues. It was a clear conspiracy between the POC and Eala to leave us behind with less than 10 days remaining before the opening of the 16th FIBA Asia Champions Cup in 2005.
I know that Eala, who represents Pangilinan, is the person dealing with you insofar as FIBA marketing is concerned. Make sure nobody gets to know any shady deals you may be concocting.
Just remember the alleged marketing fraud that involved a Japanese company, which paid marketing rights in the amount of more than six million dollars. Those privileged to have knowledge of the deal provided us with the information.
Somebody reportedly had a "blue book" that contained every detail of the transaction and shared the information with other people. I think that under the Swiss tax system, this may constitute money laundering since the actual amount going to the FIBA account was not truthfully stated.
That's not to mention the poor marketing scheme that suffered losses of more than 10 million dollars in 2000 and 2001, a financial debacle which, until today, has not been fully explained to the satisfaction of everyone in the FIBA family.
An inside source has informed me that you intend to file a court case against me. I expect you to deny this again. I say, go ahead, file a case and make my day.
I am not afraid of going to jail. From there, I can continue with my crusade for what is right, fair and just. Moreover, I have been sent to prison once before, in March 2006 to be exact. At the time, someone told you of the incident but you thought it was just made up.
Now, you better believe this – I am prepared to go back to jail and I will continue to expose all your wrongdoings.
So may God help enlighten you!
We also talked about our kids and respective families in the final minutes of our meeting in Kuala Lumpur.
I told you I would stop my criticism against you because it would also hurt your family, especially the kids. That I told you even if you have hurt my family and I in the past. As I said, I am a practicing Christian and vengeance is not in my vocabulary.
The only thing I ask of you is that you seriously re-study and respect the Bangkok Agreement that you witnessed and signed on February 4, 2007.
In your letter to the BAP-SBP dated May 13, 2008, you even stated the following: "To avoid entering into internal political debates typical for an electoral year, but to continuously support the federation in its effort to comply with the approved By-Laws of BAP-SBP. As a consequence, we agree that it is up to the statutorily constituted Nomination and Membership Committee of BAP-SBP to validate the members after the transitory period caused by the merger, based on the Validation Rules properly approved in the meantime."
In parting, I advise you, my friend and my foe, to look closely into the contents of the Bangkok Agreement and do not mislead us all with your lousy law practice as even a grade school student can understand easily what was written in that agreement.
I am optimistic that the issue of the BAP-SBP leadership will be reviewed at the soonest time (one-month period). Officials of FIBA Asia have said that the Bangkok Agreement was not respected and they plan to resolve this matter as well. (Papers regarding the court case were sent to your room while you were still in Kuala Lumpur.)
I will stop criticizing you at this time, but you have to do your part to rectify the mistakes you have made insofar as the BAP-SBP leadership is concerned.
By the way, I have accepted the offer from Dato' Yeoh Choo Hock (FIBA Asia Secretary General) to be reinstated to FIBA Youth Commission again and I should know that this offer came from one of your inner circle. I will wait for your official confirmation and hope this is not a hoax. This will be a real test of your sincerity.
I did tell you that you might yet become a good person if only you are truthful to yourself and your family.
Take the path that leads to goodness, fairness and righteousness and you will never regret it.
Yours truly,
Graham C. Lim
Secretary General
Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP)
Between BAP SecGen Graham C. Lim and FIBA SecGen Patrick Baumann
Published on February 3, 2009
Here under are the contents of the correspondence.
“To recall, you made an apology before our talks. At first instance, it was something that I had to accept with a grain of salt since I still had doubts about your sincerity and real intention. My instincts told me that you were trying to lower my guard, if not convince me to stop criticizing you.
I opened up on two important matters – one was personal and the other regarding the Bangkok Agreement, of which were among the signatories.
I informed you of the various events that had transpired in 2005 when you unilaterally suspended the BAP. Back then, I said it was illegal. However, you refused to accept any explanation. Then again, your subsequent investigation showed that it was improper for the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) to have expelled the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) because it was politically motivated.
Still, you did not lift the suspension. I told you very frankly that your action was illegal and could result in the destruction of the BAP.
To refresh your memory, you sent to Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) a letter dated August 30, 2005, which read as follows: "FIBA's conclusion is that the suspension was the appropriate means to react to the BAP's failure to comply with the agreement allegedly reached between the parties. On the other hand, though, FIBA's current conclusion is that the expulsion is inappropriate and out of proportion. In particular, it is not understandable why the new leadership of BAP in the person of its President Mr. Jose “Joey” Lina was not given sufficient time to adjust to the POC requirements after the suspension.
In fact, the sequence of events rather demonstrates that the suspension was a manoeuvre to reach the expulsion of the BAP and the integration of the opposing personalities under the PBFI. FIBA's opinion is that it is inappropriate to use basketball as a sport-political game between opposing sides.
As a consequence, FIBA cannot accept the POC's decision to remove one group in favor of another one. As a consequence of our position on the matter, it is impossible for FIBA to entertain your request for affiliation of the PBFI, dated July 29, 2005."
Your Memorandum of Understanding with the POC in September 2005 was another mistake. Why? That's because you yourself signed the MOA. That agreement cannot hold water legally since it was struck with a party that is not a FIBA member.
You should have protected the rights of the BAP as it has been a FIBA member since 1936. For why else are you being paid handsomely if you do not work for the benefit of a FIBA member? Why favor the POC when the POC is an organization that is not affiliated with the FIBA?
Your decision is ridiculous and stupid. Coming it is from a person who claims he's a lawyer makes it very hilarious.
In our conversation, you admitted that you made a mistake. And I told you that mistake can be rectified.
The time to rectify the error is NOW. And you better do something to bring back the BAP to the good graces of the FIBA. If not, then the fight continues.
I personally told you that I will be fighting until my last breath for what is right, fair and just. And you told me that I should instead wage my war against the POC. You yourself signed the MOA and started this whole problem. The BAP was the victim here.
A genuine leader does not pass the buck. The buck stops at your doorstep. It's only right that you yourself finish it NOW by renouncing the MOA.
Remember it was you who suspended the BAP in July 2005. The BAP's Christian Tan and Senator Joey Lina pleaded with you not to suspend the BAP but you hardheadedly decided to do only what pleased you, the POC and its cohort, the fledgling Pilipinas Basketball (or the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas), for financial and other considerations.
This is an act of betrayal and treason against the BAP. Somehow, you deserve all the brickbats that you are getting now for you are just reaping the whirlwind.
You claimed that you were simply pressuring the POC to reinstate the BAP. Yet, in the end, it was the BAP that has suffered a lot due to your gimmickry. And you now admit of wrongdoing.
The past is past, you now tell me. No, it is not. I say that what is happening today to the BAP is the consequence of your mistake.
If only in the past you had been the attentive person that you were when we talked in Kuala Lumpur recently, perhaps all these problems would have been avoided.
I cursed you so often because you never wanted to listen to our side and you even accused us of abusing the name FIBA. What right do you have to say that when the BAP has been associated with the FIBA since 1936.
Look at yourself in the mirror to see who is abusing the FIBA.
You are simply an employee of the FIBA. Your salary comes from the FIBA coffers. You are not – and will never ever be – the FIBA.
The BAP-SBP election on June 4, 2008 has all the elements of legitimacy. It was held in accordance to the Bangkok Agreement, which was struck on Feb. 4, 2007 with you as a signatory.
Elected were Congressman Luis Villafuerte and the Honorable Prospero Pichay as the BAP-SBP Chairman and President, respectively.
As a reminder, the POC had nothing to do – and will always have nothing to do – with the FIBA and the Bangkok Agreement.
The fraudulent election of moneyed businessman Manuel Pangilinan on June 12, 2008 has been exposed and basketball-loving Filipinos now are asking how much money changed hands between you and Pangilinan.
If, indeed, you were paid handsomely to recognize Pangilinan's bogus election, then you are really a shame to the FIBA family.
On the issue of the validation of membership in the BAP-SBP, the BAP faction controls the majority in the committee level and has 80 approved members eligible to vote for a new set of officials on the basis of the Bangkok Agreement.
To refresh your memory, the BAP-SBP legal counsel told you in a loud voice during the drafting of the Bangkok Agreement, "You are the cause of all these problems!" What a mess, remember!
The SBP faction is having its way these days only because they said that you are part of the devious scheme to recognize Pangilinan's election in exchange for marketing favor and financial considerations.
However, just don't expect the BAP to accept its fate without a fight. We demand justice and we are sure it will be served sometime in the future.
In a previous correspondence, the Philippines' athletic Chief Go Teng Kok sent you a strong-worded letter that accuses you of mismanagement of the FIBA and
enticement, expressing his utter disappointment and horror over the decision of the FIBA to unseat me from FIBA Youth Commission.
That letter was sent to you dated May 22, 2008. Mr. Go Teng Kok said: “"It is clear to me that Mr. Lim's relief was made on the say so of pseudo-Filipino basketball leaders who grovel to FIBA to preserve business interests rather than the pristine welfare of the sport. The absence of due process in this instant case diminishes if not eradicate the hope of fair play which is the heart of our involvement in sports.
To think that this is how FIBA, one of the largest sports organizations, resolves issues even makes it more unpalatable."
“It is imperative of you to rectify now the mistakes you have committed. Otherwise, I have every reason to doubt your sincerity.
And in case you want to know beforehand, we may file a case against the FIBA in the Court of Arbitration in Sports (CAS) if that is the only way to obtain justice.
It is really up to you if you want to further drag the FIBA down the river because of your incompetence and lack of fair play.
We will also be plotting other courses of action in the future if you don't mend your ways and recognize the results of the June 4, 2008 election.
During our talks in Kuala Lumpur, I ask you this candid question – Are you a Christian? You didn't answer immediately. Then I said you must be a Christian.
For no matter how good or bad a person has been, I believe there's some goodness in everyone's heart.”
Yet I wondered aloud why all these years you refused to listen or communicate with the BAP. I begged you a number of times through letters, but each time you did not answer. Even when we bumped to each other in some FIBA events, you ignored me.
I asked you why your heart is so hardened, why you are lacking in compassion. Begging is not my really my style. But being a practicing Christian, I know how to humble myself.
In your worst and most irritating act of all, you even disregarded the resolution approved by the FIBA Asia Congress to lift the suspension of BAP during a June 2006 meeting held in Kuwait. Despite the endorsement by the FIBA Asia Congress, you still did not take up the issue during the FIBA World Congress.
Instead, you accommodated the representatives of the POC and Pilipinas Basketball, both of which were never part of the FIBA family. As anyone could tell, you never had the intention to respect the advice of the FIBA Asia Congress advised and instead went on to make your own ill-willed judgment to disrespect the members of FIBA Asia.
Think about your actions. We will never accept your authoritarian rule and that is why I got so many supporters and admirers from all over the world for what I am fighting for – that is to stop your abuse of power and tyrannical rule in the FIBA.
Shamelessly, you tried to stop me from entering China and asked the Chinese government not to issue a visa to me. But till now, you continue to deny this accusation of mine. It's regrettable for you to hypocritically say that this information came directly from the Chinese government. This is another human rights violation.
Of course, I don't believe you at all. But then again, I am comforted by the dictum that liars and cheaters often go together.
You even tried to kick me out as a member of the FIBA Asia Executive Committee. Again, you issued a denial. And again, I say that I don't believe you.
When you put me to shame by dismissing me from the FIBA Youth Commission, I asked you, a lawyer, to respect the universal law of due process and give me my day in court. You accused me of being a troublemaker yet you never gave me a copy of the complaint, if any, and mention who my accusers were, again if any.
Before that, you even mailed a letter to the then-BAP-SBP executive director informing him that you are going to deal with me. The nerve of you to say that, Patrick! And like a scorned woman, the next thing you did was to unilaterally remove me from the FIBA Youth Commission.
You are really a heartless person and disrespectful of human rights. Decency dictates that I know beforehand the charges against me. But you chose to try me through publicity and expose me to public ridicule because of the write-ups in the local media.
During our talks in Kuala Lumpur, you once again denied these things really happened. At this point, I would have wanted to end our conversation because you, being Mr. Denial, was just wasting my time and becoming an unbearable nuisance.
I accused you of being a racist because you cracked a joke at my expense, of my being a Chinese (what's wrong with being a Chinese anyway?), during a visit to Geneva in November 2007 for a FIBA Youth Commission meeting, you said you had forgotten the joke, perhaps then I should refresh your memory. During my arrival in the meeting, you shamed me in front of many people by making fun of my being a Chinese with a questionable document.
Again, you denied this issue. If that were the case, how would I take your apology then?
The Manuel Pangilinan group wants to change the name "BAP-SBP" to "SBP" only. They have already sent you a letter notifying its intention to change the name. However, until now, you continue to deny this information. Despite your innocent looks, I know you are lying.
I already knew that you already had made an arrangement with Noli Eala to recognize just the SBP, and not the BAP-SBP.
I know that you and Eala are in good terms. I'd like to believe that birds of the same feather flock together. Eala, of course, is a disbarred lawyer who has been convicted by the Philippine Supreme Court for cohabiting with another man’s wife.
During the signing of the Bangkok Agreement, Eala was described by Hagop Khajirian (the FIBA Asia marketing guy) as a "snake."
I and sure you know by heart what despicable marketing fraud that Eala had committed during the 16th FIBA Asia Champions Cup when he failed to fulfill his guarantee of a US$50,000 payment to the FIBA Asia marketing group. As the host of the Champions Cup, the BAP suffered losses amounting to several million pesos.
Despite this tragedy of Eala's making, the BAP did not gain any compassion from FIBA Asia even if it did its best to provide FIBA Asia every opportunity to make thousands of dollars through its television and marketing revenues. It was a clear conspiracy between the POC and Eala to leave us behind with less than 10 days remaining before the opening of the 16th FIBA Asia Champions Cup in 2005.
I know that Eala, who represents Pangilinan, is the person dealing with you insofar as FIBA marketing is concerned. Make sure nobody gets to know any shady deals you may be concocting.
Just remember the alleged marketing fraud that involved a Japanese company, which paid marketing rights in the amount of more than six million dollars. Those privileged to have knowledge of the deal provided us with the information.
Somebody reportedly had a "blue book" that contained every detail of the transaction and shared the information with other people. I think that under the Swiss tax system, this may constitute money laundering since the actual amount going to the FIBA account was not truthfully stated.
That's not to mention the poor marketing scheme that suffered losses of more than 10 million dollars in 2000 and 2001, a financial debacle which, until today, has not been fully explained to the satisfaction of everyone in the FIBA family.
An inside source has informed me that you intend to file a court case against me. I expect you to deny this again. I say, go ahead, file a case and make my day.
I am not afraid of going to jail. From there, I can continue with my crusade for what is right, fair and just. Moreover, I have been sent to prison once before, in March 2006 to be exact. At the time, someone told you of the incident but you thought it was just made up.
Now, you better believe this – I am prepared to go back to jail and I will continue to expose all your wrongdoings.
So may God help enlighten you!
We also talked about our kids and respective families in the final minutes of our meeting in Kuala Lumpur.
I told you I would stop my criticism against you because it would also hurt your family, especially the kids. That I told you even if you have hurt my family and I in the past. As I said, I am a practicing Christian and vengeance is not in my vocabulary.
The only thing I ask of you is that you seriously re-study and respect the Bangkok Agreement that you witnessed and signed on February 4, 2007.
In your letter to the BAP-SBP dated May 13, 2008, you even stated the following: "To avoid entering into internal political debates typical for an electoral year, but to continuously support the federation in its effort to comply with the approved By-Laws of BAP-SBP. As a consequence, we agree that it is up to the statutorily constituted Nomination and Membership Committee of BAP-SBP to validate the members after the transitory period caused by the merger, based on the Validation Rules properly approved in the meantime."
In parting, I advise you, my friend and my foe, to look closely into the contents of the Bangkok Agreement and do not mislead us all with your lousy law practice as even a grade school student can understand easily what was written in that agreement.
I am optimistic that the issue of the BAP-SBP leadership will be reviewed at the soonest time (one-month period). Officials of FIBA Asia have said that the Bangkok Agreement was not respected and they plan to resolve this matter as well. (Papers regarding the court case were sent to your room while you were still in Kuala Lumpur.)
I will stop criticizing you at this time, but you have to do your part to rectify the mistakes you have made insofar as the BAP-SBP leadership is concerned.
By the way, I have accepted the offer from Dato' Yeoh Choo Hock (FIBA Asia Secretary General) to be reinstated to FIBA Youth Commission again and I should know that this offer came from one of your inner circle. I will wait for your official confirmation and hope this is not a hoax. This will be a real test of your sincerity.
I did tell you that you might yet become a good person if only you are truthful to yourself and your family.
Take the path that leads to goodness, fairness and righteousness and you will never regret it.
Yours truly,
Graham C. Lim
Secretary General
Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP)
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Chapter 5 (One of my book chapters to be released soon)
by Graham C. Lim
BANGKOK AGREEMENT VIOLATED
As specified in the Bangkok Agreement, there would be elections held after the one-year transitory period had elapsed.
In June 2008, the BAP wing of the newly established and FIBA-recognized “BAP-SBP” organization moved to call for an election of a new set of officers.
The BAP’s act was legitimate for, at 67, it owned an overwhelming majority of eligible voters as stated in the Bangkok Agreement. In contrast, the SBP group only The SBP only had 21 eligible voters.
The BAP went on to vote Pichay as the new head of the “BAP-SBP” president in June 2008. A week after the BAP held its elections, the SBP group called for its rump elections. It was done even when the SBP group belonged to the minority.
Admittedly, the SBP had the financial resources to buy off some people to perform such an illegal act. And it also had a leader that enjoyed power immensely.
Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
On the instructions of its leader, the SBP created a bogus one-man panel that would determine the eligibility of the member representatives of the “BAP-SBP” organization listed in the Bangkok Agreement to participate in their own elections.
In an utterly disgusting display of its dishonesty, treachery and a lack of decency, the SBP group went out to cleanse the voters’ list by way of disenfranchising member associations that had been affiliated with the BAP and stocking it up with league organizations, some of them spurious, that were loyal to the SBP. The idea was to show that the SBP owned more voting members and therefore, could call any election as the majority party.
Even as such, there was no quorum for the mock SBP elections.
A lawyer representative of one member association from the South, which was on the lists of both the BAP and SBP groups, decided to walk away from the assembly, unwilling to be a part of a moro-moro.
In addition to the election of a president, a 25-man BAP-SBP Board was to be created.
Despite all the cheating and hocus-pocus done with respect to the voters’ list, the SBP group could only come up with 19 member associations.
And yet in the end, it was able to produce a Board composed of 25 persons.
How could this have happened?
Even the world’s greatest mathematician, and even the best magicians in the globe, might be hard-pressed to come up with an explanation.
However, the SBP group was able to turn in the trick.
Simply put, “Dagdag-bawas” (“add and subtract”) already existed a long time ago. Even the Philippine Commission on Elections knew that pretty well.
Hereunder is the letter of Congressman Luis R. Villafuerte, the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) chair, to the FIBA Special Commission.
Special Commission for the Philippines
Members:
Dr. Borislav Stankovic,
FIBA Secretary General Emeritus
Dr. Carl Men Ky Ching
FIBA Honorary President
Dr. Ken Madsen
FIBA Legal Commission Member
Re: In the Matter of the National Basketball
Federation in the Philippines (BAP-
(Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, Inc.)
Gentlemen:
We write on behalf of the members of the Basketball Association of the Philippines[1] in the BAP-Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, Inc.,[2] in connection with proceedings before the Special Commission for the Philippines[3] appointed by Federation Internationale de Basketball[4] pursuant to its letters dated June 20, 2009 and July 7, 2009 and the Order o*f Procedure before the Special Commission. We understand that the issue at hand is BAP or BAP-SBP membership and accreditation with FIBA.[5]
Background
1. The BAP is a Philippine sports association in the field of basketball that has been in existence for 73 years. The BAP was organized in 1936, and had 66 accredited member associations in the Philippines submitted to FIBA.
2. BAP’s association with FIBA started with the participation of the Philippines in the Berlin Olympics in 1936. From its inception until 2005, it had been accredited by the FIBA, the world governing body for basketball.
3. In 2005, the Philippine Olympic Committee,[6] at the instigation of some its then officers, particularly its President, Mr. Jose Cojuangco, Jr., induced the creation of a new faction to challenge BAP’s FIBA accreditation by organizing what became the Philippine Basketball Federation Inc. (PBF). Mr. Cojuangco’s objective was to usurp BAP’s FIBA accreditation as the legitimate basketball association in the Philippines. He did this out of spite against the BAP whose members rejected his nominee for President of the organization.
4. The POC illegally suspended and subsequently expelled BAP from its roster of accredited national sports associations (NSAs) and notified FIBA of this action. When FIBA received the POC letter regarding BAP’s expulsion, Mr. Patrick Baumann, Secretary General of FIBA, wrote a letter to the POC President expressing his disgust with the unwarranted action of the POC in expelling BAP in order to replace it with PBF, a newcomer in Philippine basketball with no track record. In his letter dated July 3, 2005,[7] Mr. Baumann wrote POC that:
We are very surprised and unhappy with this decision. Therefore, and until FIBA has not concluded its own investigation, please be informed that:
i. FIBA will continue to recognize BAP as the legitimate National Federation affiliated to FIBA and responsible for basketball in the Philippines;
ii. FIBA does not recognize your decision and thus will not transfer to the POC the responsibility for basketball in your country at this stage. Your request in this sense is thus rejected;
iii. Participation in any official international basketball competition is not allowed with immediate effect;
iv. FIBA reserves the right to legally challenge the POC decision in front of CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sports).[8]
5. With the rejection by FIBA of PBF, the POC then encouraged the same faction to set up PB (Pilipinas Basketball) which then lobbied for FIBA accreditation. FIBA again refused to recognize PB. Instead, FIBA recommended that the two organizations work together to amicably settle their differences. In the meantime, FIBA suspended the Philippines from joining and taking part in international basketball competitions sanctioned by it.[9]
6. PB was composed of the same personalities as PBF, whose prior bid for accreditation was rebuked by FIBA. Like its predecessor, PB had no track record in the field of basketball.
The Tokyo Communiqué
7. On August 28, 2006, at the sidelines of the 18th FIBA World Congress in Tokyo, Japan, BAP and PB announced a Joint Communiqué of even date[10] which was witnessed by FIBA through Mr. Baumann. Under the Tokyo Communiqué, BAP and BP agreed “to merge and unite for the sake of basketball,” resulting into a single, unified basketball organization that would seek membership with the POC and would eventually take over membership in FIBA, “subject to the appropriate FIBA regulations on membership.”[11] This happened after BAP conceded to a unification, to achieve the immediate lifting of the Philippines’ suspension from FIBA competitions. Thus:
The Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) and the Pilipinas Basketball (PB), through their presidents Mr. Jose D. Lina Jr. and Mr. Bernardo Gabriel L. Atienza respectfully, jointly issue the following communiqué this 28th August 2006 in Tokyo, Japan, at the sideline of the 18th FIBA World Congress:
1. BAP and PB have agreed to merge and unite for the sake of basketball and the basketball-adoring Filipino people who have clamored for the past more than one year for the unity and harmony in the Philippine basketball community;
2. The merger and unity of the two basketball entities shall result into a single united basketball organization that will seek membership with the Philippine Olympic Committee and will eventually take over the membership of BAP in the FIBA, subject to appropriate FIBA regulations on membership …[12]
8. In the same communiqué, BAP and PB agreed to create within five days from August 28, 2006, or until September 2, 2006, a Three-Man Panel[13] composed of the Presidents of BAP and PB and a third member, to undertake the following tasks:
3. A three-man panel, composed of the presidents of BAP and PB, and a third member to be agreed upon by both presidents, shall be created within five (5) days from the date of this communiqué to undertake the following tasks:
a. To write and finalize the organization’s constitution and by-laws based on:
1) Democratic, country-wide and mass-based representation of the various sectors of the country involved in basketball namely: geographic, sectoral, professional, commercial, school-based, and special basketball sector.
2) Transparency and accountability of official acts.
3) Regular election of officers.
b. To review, verify, and validate the list of members as submitted by PB and BAP to the FIBA Central Board Special Commission created to hear the Philippine case based on agreed set of criteria for membership formulated by the three-man panel.
c. To convene the National Congress of the united organization and to oversee the election of officers.[14]
9. The BAP’s then President, Jose Lina, Jr., and his counterpart in PB agreed to appoint Mr. Manuel V. Pangilinan[15] as third member of the Panel. Mr. Pangilinan accepted the appointment in September 2006.
10. When the Panel convened to discuss the constitution and by-laws of the merged organization, Mr. Pangilinan suddenly demanded that he become the Chairman and President of the new organization. Thus, instead of acting as a neutral arbiter of the dispute between BAP and PB, Mr. Pangilinan became personally interested in leading the organization, resulting in a conflict of interest.
11. Mr. Pangilinan then instigated the creation of a new basketball association, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP),[16] which was not a merger of BAP and PB. BAP objected to the setting up of SBP, on the grounds that its creation was not in accord with the intent of the Tokyo Communiqué and that the organization of SBP was not ratified by the members of BAP. Mr. Lina, then BAP president, in disgust resigned from the Panel after Mr. Pangilinan openly remarked that he could not work with Mr. Lina. To Mr. Lina, this meant that Mr. Pangilinan was no longer a neutral arbiter but an interested party who wanted to impose his own organization to usurp the accreditation of BAP.
12. This conflict within the Panel prevented it from completing its tasks and resulted in the Philippines remaining suspended by FIBA. Thus, the implementation of the Tokyo Communiqué, which was an expression of BAP’s and PB’s intent to unite and which laid down the process for unification, was stalled and the Tokyo Communique, which was an expression of good intention although not a binding agreement was set aside.
The Bangkok Agreement
13. At FIBA’s prodding, the Panel met in Bangkok, Thailand on February 4, 2007 and executed what became known as the Bangkok Agreement.[17] The Agreement was witnessed by FIBA Asia President Shk Baud Bin Ali Al-Thani, FIBA Asia Secretary General Dato Yeoh Choo Hock, and FIBA Secretary General Patrick Baumann.
14. The Bangkok Agreement was negotiated and entered into by BAP and PB with the guidance and imprimatur of FIBA. The Panel agreed to the following “final terms and conditions” of the unity between BAP and PB for submission to FIBA:
MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT
…
WHEREAS, the 3-man panel has met in Bangkok, Thailand on February 4, 2007 and agreed on the final terms and conditions of the unity between BAP and BP.
WHEREAS, the 3-man panel wishes to document such terms and conditions for submission to FIBA.
NOW, WHEREFORE, the parties hereby confirm and acknowledge, on behalf of BAP and PB, as follows:
1. Corporate Name
The corporate name of SAMAHANG BASKETBOL NG PILIPINAS INC. shall be amended to read:
“BAP-SAMAHANG BASKETBOL NG PILIPINAS INC.”
2. Removal of Officers
Officers of BAP-SAMAHANG BASKETBOL NG PILIPINAS INC. (SBP) may be removed by the vote of at least two-thirds (2/3) of the members of the Board of Trustees. For this purpose, Article XII, Section 3 of the By-Laws shall be amended to reflect this voting requirement.
3. Membership
All bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo communiqué shall be admitted as “members”, instead of “probationary members” of SBP.
4. Nominations
(a) BAP shall have the rights to nominate for the following positions:
(1) Chairman of the Board of Trustees
(2) Treasurer
(b) PB shall have the rights to nominate for the following positions:
(1) Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees
(2) Corporate Secretary
5. Officers
The following officers shall be elected by BAP and PB at the Unity Congress and will serve as such during the Transitory Period referred to in the By-Laws of SBP and until their successors are elected and qualifies:
Chairman – to be named at the Unity Congress[18]
Vice Chairman- VICTORICO P. VARGAS
President - MANUEL V. PANGILINAN
Secretary – MARIVIC R. AÑONUEVO
Treasurer – to be named at the Unity Congress
Legal Counsel – Atty. Bonifacio Alentajan
The Board of Trustees shall conduct an executive search in order to select an appropriate neutral candidate for the position of Executive Director. The new Board of Trustees shall elect the successor of the President from among themselves not later than the expiration of the Transitory Period.
The signatories to the Bangkok Agreement were Mr. Christian Tan and Atty. Bonifacio Alentajan, representing BAP, Mr. Jose Capistrano, for PB, and Mr. Pangilinan, as the third and supposedly neutral member.
15. Pursuant to the Bangkok Agreement, which under its terms constituted the “final terms and conditions of the unity between BAP and PB,”[19] Mr. Pangilinan was agreed to be named President of BAP-SBP,[20] although he was neither a member of BAP nor of PB. Mr. Pangilinan conceded the position of Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the BAP-SBP as it was reserved to the BAP’s nominee,[21] who was Mr. Luis R. Villafuerte.[22] The officers of BAP-SBP were to serve only during the transitory period, i.e., from their election on February 5, 2007 until the conduct of the 2008 National Congress.[23] After this period, BAP-SBP shall hold its first regular elections of the Board of Trustees and officers of the BAP-SBP.[24]
16. In the first regular elections to be held in 2008 (one year after the interim elections held at the Unity Congress in 2007), BAP and PB agreed that the lists of members submitted to FIBA shall be entitled to vote and to elect the regular board of trustees and officers to replace the interim Board of Trustees and officers.[25] The lists placed the total number of members at 87, with 66 coming from BAP and 21 from PB.[26] Since there were six organizations common to the lists respectively submitted by BAP and PB, the net total number of members in the lists would only be 81.[27] As stimulated in the Bangkok Agreement which constitutes the final terms and conditions of the unity between BAP and PB, “all bonafide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo communiqué shall be admitted as “members”, instead of “probationary members”.
16. In a letter by Mr. Baumann to the BAP-SBP President, Mr. Pangilinan, FIBA stated that the validation of members shall be made “after the transition period.”[28] This was consistent with Clause 3 of the Bangkok Agreement, which stipulated that “(a)ll bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo Communiqué shall be admitted as ‘members,’ instead of ‘probationary members’ of SBP.”
The February 5, 2007 Unity Congress
17. At the Unity Congress held by BAP and PB on February 5, 2007, the following officers were elected pursuant to the Bangkok Agreement:
(a) Chairman: Luis R. Villafuerte
(b) Vice-Chairman: Victorico P. Vargas
(c) President: Manuel V. Pangilinan
(d) Secretary: Marievic R. Añonuevo
(e) Treasurer: Christian Tan
(f) Legal Counsel: Bonifacio Alentajan.[29]
18. The BAP representatives at the Unity Congress expected Mr. Pangilinan and his group to accept the result of the elections. However, in spite of his signature in the minutes of the Unity Congress showing that Mr. Villafuerte was elected as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of BAP-SBP, Mr. Pangilinan refused to recognize Mr. Villafuerte, repudiating not only the provisions of the Bangkok Agreement but also the results of the Unity Congress, whose minutes he signed as supposed neutral third member of the Panel.
19. In addition, Mr. Pangilinan refused to comply with the other stipulations of the Bangkok Agreement, such as: (a) the Board of Trustees shall conduct an executive search to select an appropriate, neutral candidate for the position of Executive Director;[30] and (b) the Board of Trustees of BAP-SBP shall consist of 12 nominees of BAP and 12 nominees of PB, with Mr. Pangilinan as the 25th member, the intent being that he would remain a neutral participant during the transition period. Mr. Pangilinan also refused to comply with the express stipulations of the Bangkok Agreement that for SBP to be recognized by BAP, its Articles of Incorporation shall be amended, such that the corporate name of SBP would be changed to “BAP-SBP.”
The First Regular Election
20. When the one-year transition period from and after the Unity Congress was about to end, Mr. Villafuerte, in his capacity as Chairman of BAP-SBP, called for a general membership meeting on May 17, 2008.[31] The purpose of the meeting was (a) to obtain approval of the members entitled to participate in the election of the first regular Board of Trustees and officers; and (b) to set the National Congress for the election of officers on June 4, 2008. All the members present approved a resolution to issue the Notice of the National Congress of BAP-SBP.
21. At the National Congress of BAP-SBP on June 4, 2008, Mr. Villafuerte and several BAP representatives[32] were elected as trustees and officers to serve for a term of four years, as follows:
Executive Officers
Chairman - Luis R. Villafuerte
Vice Chairman - Wilson T. Young
President - Prospero A. Pichay, Jr.
Executive Director - Christian D. Tan
Secretary - Teresita D. Abundo
Legal Counsel - Atty. Bonifacio A. Alentajan[33]
A total of 64 out of the 81 members, or 80% of the members in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA, attended the June 4, 2008 Congress.[34]
22. Mr. Pangilinan and his group, on the other hand, ignored the National Congress and convened their own election on June 12, 2008, during which Mr. Pangilinan and his nominees were purportedly elected as officers of BAP-SBP, as follows:
Chairman - Gov. Oscar S. Moreno
Vice Chairman - Victorico P. Vargas
President - Manuel V. Pangilinan
Executive Director - Jose Emmanuel M. Eala
Secretary - Marievic G. Ramos-Anonuevo
Treasurer - Dr. Ernesto Jay G. Adalem[35]
Only 17 basketball organizations attended the June 12, 2008 Congress called by the group of Mr. Pangilinan. Out of the 17 attendeess, only five were members of BAP included in the lists submitted to FIBA, while five were new members and not among those in the said lists.[36] Hence, only 12 of the attendees were in the lists of members submitted to FIBA.
Disenfranchisement of BAP Members
23. As stated, the Bangkok Agreement clearly provides that “(a)ll bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo Communiqué shall be admitted as ‘members,’ instead of ‘probationary members’ of SBP.”[37] This simply means that those in the lists will have the full rights of a regular member, including the right to vote and be voted for in the election of the regular officers and trustees of BAP-SBP. This was the intention of the representatives of BAP and PB who negotiated for and who eventually signed the Bangkok Agreement.
24. In ordinary usage, the word “regular” means “complete, thorough, unmitigated,”[38] while “probationary” means “being tried out” or “on a trial basis or on probation.”[39] The word “probation” is defined as “the condition of being subjected to such testing, examination or evaluation” or “the action of subjecting an individual to a period of testing and trial as to be able to ascertain the individual’s fitness for something (as … a membership in a particular organization) …”[40] In other words, probationary members are not regular members and do not possess the full rights of membership as regular members.
25. Stated differently, when it was declared in the Bangkok Agreement that all bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA “shall be admitted as ‘members,’ instead of ‘probationary members’” of BAP-SBP, it bestowed upon such organizations “complete, thorough and unmitigated membership,” with all its appurtenant rights. Mr. Pangilinan ignored this stipulation and insisted on a new, simulated “validation” procedure to eliminate those already submitted to FIBA, and already agreed upon as regular members with the right to vote in the first regular election after the transition period.
26. The “validation” scheme proposed by Mr. Pangilinan and his group, which they formalized through the by-laws of SBP (not BAP-SBP), was obviously intended to decimate BAP’s representation in BAP-SBP and to remove the members who were perceived to be not supportive of the leadership of Mr. Pangilinan. In the first place, there is nothing in the Bangkok Agreement that authorized the Panel to “validate” the members in the lists submitted to FIBA by submitting their names to the Nomination and Membership Committee of SBP, in case the Panel failed to perform its task within the period given to it.
27. After the supposed validation process, the group of Mr. Pangilinan unilaterally declared that only six out of the 66 BAP members in the list submitted to FIBA qualified as active members with the right to vote and relegated 60 as either “associate members” or outright “non-members” with no voting rights.[41]
28. Thus, in the National Congress held by Mr. Pangilinan and his group on June 12, 2008, only the following attended and voted for them as officers of BAP-SBP:
1. Philippine Collegiate Champions League
2. Pinoy Basketbol, Inc.
3. Baguio-Benguet Educational athletic League
4. National Collegiate Athletic Association-South
5. Iloilo Basketball League
6. Visayas Amateur Athletic Association
7. Cagayan de Oro Basketball Federation
8. El Federacion Basketbolista de Zamboanga
9. Philippine Basketball League
10. Philippine Basketball Association
11. Cagayan de Oro Schools Athletic Association
12. Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc.
13. National Athletic Association of Schools,
14. National Collegiate Athletic Association
15. University Athletic Association of the Philippines
16. Small Basketeers Philippines, Inc.
17. Women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association
As stated, only five of these attendees were BAP members[42], and five out of the 17 above were new members[43] and not in the lists submitted to FIBA. All in all, a total of 60 BAP members in the lists submitted to FIBA were disenfranchised by Mr. Pangilinan and his group.
29. In contrast, a total of 65 BAP-SBP members[44] attended and participated in the election during the National Congress and Election of Officers held on June 4, 2008 by Mr. Villafuerte, et al., pursuant to the Bangkok Agreement. These were:
1. Federation of School Sports Associations of the Philippines
(FESSAP)
2. State Colleges and Universities Athletic Association (SCUAA)
3. Private Schools Athletic Association (PRISAA)
4. National Capital Region Athletic Association (NCRAA)
5. Philippine Inter-School Colleges and Universities Athletic
Association (PISCUAA)
6. Colleges and Universities Sports Association
(CUSA)
7. University and Collegiate Athletic Association
(UCAA)
8. Universities, Schools, Colleges Athletic Association (USCAA)
9. Universities, Schools, Colleges Athletic Association (USCAA- South)
10. Cebu Basketball League (CBL)
11. Cebu Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA)
12. National Basketball League (NBL)
13. Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL)
14. Davao basketball League (DBL)
15. Davao’s Inter-Church Basketball League (ICBL-Davao)
16. Women Basketball League-Davao (WBL-Davao)
17. Leyte Amateur Athletic Association
(LAAA)
18. Western Leyte Amateur Athletic Association (WLAAA)
19. Southern Leyte Amateur Athletic Association (SLAAA)
20. Eastern Samar Amateur Athletic Association (ESAAA)
21. Northern Samar Amateur Athletic Association (NSAAA)
22. Samar Amateur Athletic Association (SAAA)
23. Women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (WNCAA)
24. Manila Amateur Sports Association (MASA)
25. Philippine Integrated Chinese Athletic Association (PICAA)
26. Zamboanga City Sports Athletic Foundation (ZCSADF)
27. Zamboanga Basketball League (ZBL)
28. United Regional Basketball League (URBL)
29. Bicol Colleges and Universities Athletic Association (BCUAA)
30. National Collegiate Athletic Association-South (NCAA-South)
31. Region Eight Administrative League (REAL)
32. Air 21 Express Basketball Club
33. Tanduay Basketball Club (TBC)
by Graham C. Lim
BANGKOK AGREEMENT VIOLATED
As specified in the Bangkok Agreement, there would be elections held after the one-year transitory period had elapsed.
In June 2008, the BAP wing of the newly established and FIBA-recognized “BAP-SBP” organization moved to call for an election of a new set of officers.
The BAP’s act was legitimate for, at 67, it owned an overwhelming majority of eligible voters as stated in the Bangkok Agreement. In contrast, the SBP group only The SBP only had 21 eligible voters.
The BAP went on to vote Pichay as the new head of the “BAP-SBP” president in June 2008. A week after the BAP held its elections, the SBP group called for its rump elections. It was done even when the SBP group belonged to the minority.
Admittedly, the SBP had the financial resources to buy off some people to perform such an illegal act. And it also had a leader that enjoyed power immensely.
Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
On the instructions of its leader, the SBP created a bogus one-man panel that would determine the eligibility of the member representatives of the “BAP-SBP” organization listed in the Bangkok Agreement to participate in their own elections.
In an utterly disgusting display of its dishonesty, treachery and a lack of decency, the SBP group went out to cleanse the voters’ list by way of disenfranchising member associations that had been affiliated with the BAP and stocking it up with league organizations, some of them spurious, that were loyal to the SBP. The idea was to show that the SBP owned more voting members and therefore, could call any election as the majority party.
Even as such, there was no quorum for the mock SBP elections.
A lawyer representative of one member association from the South, which was on the lists of both the BAP and SBP groups, decided to walk away from the assembly, unwilling to be a part of a moro-moro.
In addition to the election of a president, a 25-man BAP-SBP Board was to be created.
Despite all the cheating and hocus-pocus done with respect to the voters’ list, the SBP group could only come up with 19 member associations.
And yet in the end, it was able to produce a Board composed of 25 persons.
How could this have happened?
Even the world’s greatest mathematician, and even the best magicians in the globe, might be hard-pressed to come up with an explanation.
However, the SBP group was able to turn in the trick.
Simply put, “Dagdag-bawas” (“add and subtract”) already existed a long time ago. Even the Philippine Commission on Elections knew that pretty well.
Hereunder is the letter of Congressman Luis R. Villafuerte, the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) chair, to the FIBA Special Commission.
Special Commission for the Philippines
Members:
Dr. Borislav Stankovic,
FIBA Secretary General Emeritus
Dr. Carl Men Ky Ching
FIBA Honorary President
Dr. Ken Madsen
FIBA Legal Commission Member
Re: In the Matter of the National Basketball
Federation in the Philippines (BAP-
(Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, Inc.)
Gentlemen:
We write on behalf of the members of the Basketball Association of the Philippines[1] in the BAP-Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, Inc.,[2] in connection with proceedings before the Special Commission for the Philippines[3] appointed by Federation Internationale de Basketball[4] pursuant to its letters dated June 20, 2009 and July 7, 2009 and the Order o*f Procedure before the Special Commission. We understand that the issue at hand is BAP or BAP-SBP membership and accreditation with FIBA.[5]
Background
1. The BAP is a Philippine sports association in the field of basketball that has been in existence for 73 years. The BAP was organized in 1936, and had 66 accredited member associations in the Philippines submitted to FIBA.
2. BAP’s association with FIBA started with the participation of the Philippines in the Berlin Olympics in 1936. From its inception until 2005, it had been accredited by the FIBA, the world governing body for basketball.
3. In 2005, the Philippine Olympic Committee,[6] at the instigation of some its then officers, particularly its President, Mr. Jose Cojuangco, Jr., induced the creation of a new faction to challenge BAP’s FIBA accreditation by organizing what became the Philippine Basketball Federation Inc. (PBF). Mr. Cojuangco’s objective was to usurp BAP’s FIBA accreditation as the legitimate basketball association in the Philippines. He did this out of spite against the BAP whose members rejected his nominee for President of the organization.
4. The POC illegally suspended and subsequently expelled BAP from its roster of accredited national sports associations (NSAs) and notified FIBA of this action. When FIBA received the POC letter regarding BAP’s expulsion, Mr. Patrick Baumann, Secretary General of FIBA, wrote a letter to the POC President expressing his disgust with the unwarranted action of the POC in expelling BAP in order to replace it with PBF, a newcomer in Philippine basketball with no track record. In his letter dated July 3, 2005,[7] Mr. Baumann wrote POC that:
We are very surprised and unhappy with this decision. Therefore, and until FIBA has not concluded its own investigation, please be informed that:
i. FIBA will continue to recognize BAP as the legitimate National Federation affiliated to FIBA and responsible for basketball in the Philippines;
ii. FIBA does not recognize your decision and thus will not transfer to the POC the responsibility for basketball in your country at this stage. Your request in this sense is thus rejected;
iii. Participation in any official international basketball competition is not allowed with immediate effect;
iv. FIBA reserves the right to legally challenge the POC decision in front of CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sports).[8]
5. With the rejection by FIBA of PBF, the POC then encouraged the same faction to set up PB (Pilipinas Basketball) which then lobbied for FIBA accreditation. FIBA again refused to recognize PB. Instead, FIBA recommended that the two organizations work together to amicably settle their differences. In the meantime, FIBA suspended the Philippines from joining and taking part in international basketball competitions sanctioned by it.[9]
6. PB was composed of the same personalities as PBF, whose prior bid for accreditation was rebuked by FIBA. Like its predecessor, PB had no track record in the field of basketball.
The Tokyo Communiqué
7. On August 28, 2006, at the sidelines of the 18th FIBA World Congress in Tokyo, Japan, BAP and PB announced a Joint Communiqué of even date[10] which was witnessed by FIBA through Mr. Baumann. Under the Tokyo Communiqué, BAP and BP agreed “to merge and unite for the sake of basketball,” resulting into a single, unified basketball organization that would seek membership with the POC and would eventually take over membership in FIBA, “subject to the appropriate FIBA regulations on membership.”[11] This happened after BAP conceded to a unification, to achieve the immediate lifting of the Philippines’ suspension from FIBA competitions. Thus:
The Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) and the Pilipinas Basketball (PB), through their presidents Mr. Jose D. Lina Jr. and Mr. Bernardo Gabriel L. Atienza respectfully, jointly issue the following communiqué this 28th August 2006 in Tokyo, Japan, at the sideline of the 18th FIBA World Congress:
1. BAP and PB have agreed to merge and unite for the sake of basketball and the basketball-adoring Filipino people who have clamored for the past more than one year for the unity and harmony in the Philippine basketball community;
2. The merger and unity of the two basketball entities shall result into a single united basketball organization that will seek membership with the Philippine Olympic Committee and will eventually take over the membership of BAP in the FIBA, subject to appropriate FIBA regulations on membership …[12]
8. In the same communiqué, BAP and PB agreed to create within five days from August 28, 2006, or until September 2, 2006, a Three-Man Panel[13] composed of the Presidents of BAP and PB and a third member, to undertake the following tasks:
3. A three-man panel, composed of the presidents of BAP and PB, and a third member to be agreed upon by both presidents, shall be created within five (5) days from the date of this communiqué to undertake the following tasks:
a. To write and finalize the organization’s constitution and by-laws based on:
1) Democratic, country-wide and mass-based representation of the various sectors of the country involved in basketball namely: geographic, sectoral, professional, commercial, school-based, and special basketball sector.
2) Transparency and accountability of official acts.
3) Regular election of officers.
b. To review, verify, and validate the list of members as submitted by PB and BAP to the FIBA Central Board Special Commission created to hear the Philippine case based on agreed set of criteria for membership formulated by the three-man panel.
c. To convene the National Congress of the united organization and to oversee the election of officers.[14]
9. The BAP’s then President, Jose Lina, Jr., and his counterpart in PB agreed to appoint Mr. Manuel V. Pangilinan[15] as third member of the Panel. Mr. Pangilinan accepted the appointment in September 2006.
10. When the Panel convened to discuss the constitution and by-laws of the merged organization, Mr. Pangilinan suddenly demanded that he become the Chairman and President of the new organization. Thus, instead of acting as a neutral arbiter of the dispute between BAP and PB, Mr. Pangilinan became personally interested in leading the organization, resulting in a conflict of interest.
11. Mr. Pangilinan then instigated the creation of a new basketball association, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP),[16] which was not a merger of BAP and PB. BAP objected to the setting up of SBP, on the grounds that its creation was not in accord with the intent of the Tokyo Communiqué and that the organization of SBP was not ratified by the members of BAP. Mr. Lina, then BAP president, in disgust resigned from the Panel after Mr. Pangilinan openly remarked that he could not work with Mr. Lina. To Mr. Lina, this meant that Mr. Pangilinan was no longer a neutral arbiter but an interested party who wanted to impose his own organization to usurp the accreditation of BAP.
12. This conflict within the Panel prevented it from completing its tasks and resulted in the Philippines remaining suspended by FIBA. Thus, the implementation of the Tokyo Communiqué, which was an expression of BAP’s and PB’s intent to unite and which laid down the process for unification, was stalled and the Tokyo Communique, which was an expression of good intention although not a binding agreement was set aside.
The Bangkok Agreement
13. At FIBA’s prodding, the Panel met in Bangkok, Thailand on February 4, 2007 and executed what became known as the Bangkok Agreement.[17] The Agreement was witnessed by FIBA Asia President Shk Baud Bin Ali Al-Thani, FIBA Asia Secretary General Dato Yeoh Choo Hock, and FIBA Secretary General Patrick Baumann.
14. The Bangkok Agreement was negotiated and entered into by BAP and PB with the guidance and imprimatur of FIBA. The Panel agreed to the following “final terms and conditions” of the unity between BAP and PB for submission to FIBA:
MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT
…
WHEREAS, the 3-man panel has met in Bangkok, Thailand on February 4, 2007 and agreed on the final terms and conditions of the unity between BAP and BP.
WHEREAS, the 3-man panel wishes to document such terms and conditions for submission to FIBA.
NOW, WHEREFORE, the parties hereby confirm and acknowledge, on behalf of BAP and PB, as follows:
1. Corporate Name
The corporate name of SAMAHANG BASKETBOL NG PILIPINAS INC. shall be amended to read:
“BAP-SAMAHANG BASKETBOL NG PILIPINAS INC.”
2. Removal of Officers
Officers of BAP-SAMAHANG BASKETBOL NG PILIPINAS INC. (SBP) may be removed by the vote of at least two-thirds (2/3) of the members of the Board of Trustees. For this purpose, Article XII, Section 3 of the By-Laws shall be amended to reflect this voting requirement.
3. Membership
All bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo communiqué shall be admitted as “members”, instead of “probationary members” of SBP.
4. Nominations
(a) BAP shall have the rights to nominate for the following positions:
(1) Chairman of the Board of Trustees
(2) Treasurer
(b) PB shall have the rights to nominate for the following positions:
(1) Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees
(2) Corporate Secretary
5. Officers
The following officers shall be elected by BAP and PB at the Unity Congress and will serve as such during the Transitory Period referred to in the By-Laws of SBP and until their successors are elected and qualifies:
Chairman – to be named at the Unity Congress[18]
Vice Chairman- VICTORICO P. VARGAS
President - MANUEL V. PANGILINAN
Secretary – MARIVIC R. AÑONUEVO
Treasurer – to be named at the Unity Congress
Legal Counsel – Atty. Bonifacio Alentajan
The Board of Trustees shall conduct an executive search in order to select an appropriate neutral candidate for the position of Executive Director. The new Board of Trustees shall elect the successor of the President from among themselves not later than the expiration of the Transitory Period.
The signatories to the Bangkok Agreement were Mr. Christian Tan and Atty. Bonifacio Alentajan, representing BAP, Mr. Jose Capistrano, for PB, and Mr. Pangilinan, as the third and supposedly neutral member.
15. Pursuant to the Bangkok Agreement, which under its terms constituted the “final terms and conditions of the unity between BAP and PB,”[19] Mr. Pangilinan was agreed to be named President of BAP-SBP,[20] although he was neither a member of BAP nor of PB. Mr. Pangilinan conceded the position of Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the BAP-SBP as it was reserved to the BAP’s nominee,[21] who was Mr. Luis R. Villafuerte.[22] The officers of BAP-SBP were to serve only during the transitory period, i.e., from their election on February 5, 2007 until the conduct of the 2008 National Congress.[23] After this period, BAP-SBP shall hold its first regular elections of the Board of Trustees and officers of the BAP-SBP.[24]
16. In the first regular elections to be held in 2008 (one year after the interim elections held at the Unity Congress in 2007), BAP and PB agreed that the lists of members submitted to FIBA shall be entitled to vote and to elect the regular board of trustees and officers to replace the interim Board of Trustees and officers.[25] The lists placed the total number of members at 87, with 66 coming from BAP and 21 from PB.[26] Since there were six organizations common to the lists respectively submitted by BAP and PB, the net total number of members in the lists would only be 81.[27] As stimulated in the Bangkok Agreement which constitutes the final terms and conditions of the unity between BAP and PB, “all bonafide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo communiqué shall be admitted as “members”, instead of “probationary members”.
16. In a letter by Mr. Baumann to the BAP-SBP President, Mr. Pangilinan, FIBA stated that the validation of members shall be made “after the transition period.”[28] This was consistent with Clause 3 of the Bangkok Agreement, which stipulated that “(a)ll bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo Communiqué shall be admitted as ‘members,’ instead of ‘probationary members’ of SBP.”
The February 5, 2007 Unity Congress
17. At the Unity Congress held by BAP and PB on February 5, 2007, the following officers were elected pursuant to the Bangkok Agreement:
(a) Chairman: Luis R. Villafuerte
(b) Vice-Chairman: Victorico P. Vargas
(c) President: Manuel V. Pangilinan
(d) Secretary: Marievic R. Añonuevo
(e) Treasurer: Christian Tan
(f) Legal Counsel: Bonifacio Alentajan.[29]
18. The BAP representatives at the Unity Congress expected Mr. Pangilinan and his group to accept the result of the elections. However, in spite of his signature in the minutes of the Unity Congress showing that Mr. Villafuerte was elected as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of BAP-SBP, Mr. Pangilinan refused to recognize Mr. Villafuerte, repudiating not only the provisions of the Bangkok Agreement but also the results of the Unity Congress, whose minutes he signed as supposed neutral third member of the Panel.
19. In addition, Mr. Pangilinan refused to comply with the other stipulations of the Bangkok Agreement, such as: (a) the Board of Trustees shall conduct an executive search to select an appropriate, neutral candidate for the position of Executive Director;[30] and (b) the Board of Trustees of BAP-SBP shall consist of 12 nominees of BAP and 12 nominees of PB, with Mr. Pangilinan as the 25th member, the intent being that he would remain a neutral participant during the transition period. Mr. Pangilinan also refused to comply with the express stipulations of the Bangkok Agreement that for SBP to be recognized by BAP, its Articles of Incorporation shall be amended, such that the corporate name of SBP would be changed to “BAP-SBP.”
The First Regular Election
20. When the one-year transition period from and after the Unity Congress was about to end, Mr. Villafuerte, in his capacity as Chairman of BAP-SBP, called for a general membership meeting on May 17, 2008.[31] The purpose of the meeting was (a) to obtain approval of the members entitled to participate in the election of the first regular Board of Trustees and officers; and (b) to set the National Congress for the election of officers on June 4, 2008. All the members present approved a resolution to issue the Notice of the National Congress of BAP-SBP.
21. At the National Congress of BAP-SBP on June 4, 2008, Mr. Villafuerte and several BAP representatives[32] were elected as trustees and officers to serve for a term of four years, as follows:
Executive Officers
Chairman - Luis R. Villafuerte
Vice Chairman - Wilson T. Young
President - Prospero A. Pichay, Jr.
Executive Director - Christian D. Tan
Secretary - Teresita D. Abundo
Legal Counsel - Atty. Bonifacio A. Alentajan[33]
A total of 64 out of the 81 members, or 80% of the members in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA, attended the June 4, 2008 Congress.[34]
22. Mr. Pangilinan and his group, on the other hand, ignored the National Congress and convened their own election on June 12, 2008, during which Mr. Pangilinan and his nominees were purportedly elected as officers of BAP-SBP, as follows:
Chairman - Gov. Oscar S. Moreno
Vice Chairman - Victorico P. Vargas
President - Manuel V. Pangilinan
Executive Director - Jose Emmanuel M. Eala
Secretary - Marievic G. Ramos-Anonuevo
Treasurer - Dr. Ernesto Jay G. Adalem[35]
Only 17 basketball organizations attended the June 12, 2008 Congress called by the group of Mr. Pangilinan. Out of the 17 attendeess, only five were members of BAP included in the lists submitted to FIBA, while five were new members and not among those in the said lists.[36] Hence, only 12 of the attendees were in the lists of members submitted to FIBA.
Disenfranchisement of BAP Members
23. As stated, the Bangkok Agreement clearly provides that “(a)ll bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA pursuant to the Tokyo Communiqué shall be admitted as ‘members,’ instead of ‘probationary members’ of SBP.”[37] This simply means that those in the lists will have the full rights of a regular member, including the right to vote and be voted for in the election of the regular officers and trustees of BAP-SBP. This was the intention of the representatives of BAP and PB who negotiated for and who eventually signed the Bangkok Agreement.
24. In ordinary usage, the word “regular” means “complete, thorough, unmitigated,”[38] while “probationary” means “being tried out” or “on a trial basis or on probation.”[39] The word “probation” is defined as “the condition of being subjected to such testing, examination or evaluation” or “the action of subjecting an individual to a period of testing and trial as to be able to ascertain the individual’s fitness for something (as … a membership in a particular organization) …”[40] In other words, probationary members are not regular members and do not possess the full rights of membership as regular members.
25. Stated differently, when it was declared in the Bangkok Agreement that all bona fide members of BAP and PB appearing in the lists submitted by BAP and PB to FIBA “shall be admitted as ‘members,’ instead of ‘probationary members’” of BAP-SBP, it bestowed upon such organizations “complete, thorough and unmitigated membership,” with all its appurtenant rights. Mr. Pangilinan ignored this stipulation and insisted on a new, simulated “validation” procedure to eliminate those already submitted to FIBA, and already agreed upon as regular members with the right to vote in the first regular election after the transition period.
26. The “validation” scheme proposed by Mr. Pangilinan and his group, which they formalized through the by-laws of SBP (not BAP-SBP), was obviously intended to decimate BAP’s representation in BAP-SBP and to remove the members who were perceived to be not supportive of the leadership of Mr. Pangilinan. In the first place, there is nothing in the Bangkok Agreement that authorized the Panel to “validate” the members in the lists submitted to FIBA by submitting their names to the Nomination and Membership Committee of SBP, in case the Panel failed to perform its task within the period given to it.
27. After the supposed validation process, the group of Mr. Pangilinan unilaterally declared that only six out of the 66 BAP members in the list submitted to FIBA qualified as active members with the right to vote and relegated 60 as either “associate members” or outright “non-members” with no voting rights.[41]
28. Thus, in the National Congress held by Mr. Pangilinan and his group on June 12, 2008, only the following attended and voted for them as officers of BAP-SBP:
1. Philippine Collegiate Champions League
2. Pinoy Basketbol, Inc.
3. Baguio-Benguet Educational athletic League
4. National Collegiate Athletic Association-South
5. Iloilo Basketball League
6. Visayas Amateur Athletic Association
7. Cagayan de Oro Basketball Federation
8. El Federacion Basketbolista de Zamboanga
9. Philippine Basketball League
10. Philippine Basketball Association
11. Cagayan de Oro Schools Athletic Association
12. Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc.
13. National Athletic Association of Schools,
14. National Collegiate Athletic Association
15. University Athletic Association of the Philippines
16. Small Basketeers Philippines, Inc.
17. Women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association
As stated, only five of these attendees were BAP members[42], and five out of the 17 above were new members[43] and not in the lists submitted to FIBA. All in all, a total of 60 BAP members in the lists submitted to FIBA were disenfranchised by Mr. Pangilinan and his group.
29. In contrast, a total of 65 BAP-SBP members[44] attended and participated in the election during the National Congress and Election of Officers held on June 4, 2008 by Mr. Villafuerte, et al., pursuant to the Bangkok Agreement. These were:
1. Federation of School Sports Associations of the Philippines
(FESSAP)
2. State Colleges and Universities Athletic Association (SCUAA)
3. Private Schools Athletic Association (PRISAA)
4. National Capital Region Athletic Association (NCRAA)
5. Philippine Inter-School Colleges and Universities Athletic
Association (PISCUAA)
6. Colleges and Universities Sports Association
(CUSA)
7. University and Collegiate Athletic Association
(UCAA)
8. Universities, Schools, Colleges Athletic Association (USCAA)
9. Universities, Schools, Colleges Athletic Association (USCAA- South)
10. Cebu Basketball League (CBL)
11. Cebu Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA)
12. National Basketball League (NBL)
13. Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL)
14. Davao basketball League (DBL)
15. Davao’s Inter-Church Basketball League (ICBL-Davao)
16. Women Basketball League-Davao (WBL-Davao)
17. Leyte Amateur Athletic Association
(LAAA)
18. Western Leyte Amateur Athletic Association (WLAAA)
19. Southern Leyte Amateur Athletic Association (SLAAA)
20. Eastern Samar Amateur Athletic Association (ESAAA)
21. Northern Samar Amateur Athletic Association (NSAAA)
22. Samar Amateur Athletic Association (SAAA)
23. Women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (WNCAA)
24. Manila Amateur Sports Association (MASA)
25. Philippine Integrated Chinese Athletic Association (PICAA)
26. Zamboanga City Sports Athletic Foundation (ZCSADF)
27. Zamboanga Basketball League (ZBL)
28. United Regional Basketball League (URBL)
29. Bicol Colleges and Universities Athletic Association (BCUAA)
30. National Collegiate Athletic Association-South (NCAA-South)
31. Region Eight Administrative League (REAL)
32. Air 21 Express Basketball Club
33. Tanduay Basketball Club (TBC)
