HOUNDED by criticisms on the UAAP board’s decision to suspend De La Salle University (La Salle) in the UAAP for a year, Fr. Ermito de Sagon, O.P. who led the investigation, said the board’s decision is final and irreversible.
De Sagon, UST’s Institute of Physical Education director, stressed that the UAAP board only followed the rule when it decided to sanction the Taft-based school for fielding two ineligible players in Season 68.
“There is nothing to clarify because the results are already known,” de Sagon said. “In fact, they are the ones who made their players’ ineligibility issue public, but admitting it will not make a difference.”
La Salle officials and alumni cried foul and said the board gave an excessively punitive sanction when it decided to ban the school in all 14 sporting events for one season.
De Sagon, however, said UAAP rules state that any university that seeks to qualify in the league must have entries in compulsory sports basketball and volleyball.
“The UAAP membership is by school, not by sport,” de Sagon said. But since DLSU could not have a basketball entry because of the suspension, it follows it is suspended in all the sports throughout the season.
He also belied La Salle’s claims of lack of due process.
“We acknowledged their investigation reports, but we found them insufficient because they did not have a complete transcription of the investigation,” de Sagon said. “They (La Salle’s officials) were not willing to feed much information as advised by their lawyers.”
The UAAP board, he said, interviewed the people concerned, including the two beleaguered players, who said La Salle authorities had known all about the ineligibility but still fielded them as players.
La Salle’s official statement itself said the school’s executive vice-president, Carmelita Quebengco, had known about cager Mark Benitez’ ineligibility and the spurious Philippine Education Placement Test results of Tim Gatchalian as early as Sept. 30 last year. Bu the players were allowed to participate until the end of the basketball season in October, de Sagon said.
“They should have withdrawn the concerned players from the lineup immediately,” de Sagon said.
Despite La Salle’s absence, de Sagon remains optimistic that the 69-year-old league will still have the same hype and excitement.
“The UAAP had established itself before La Salle came in and that fact ensures that the league will not fail,” de Sagon said. Llanesca T. Panti
