NAGPULONG Huwebes ng umaga ang pito sa 12 miyembro ng Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Board of Governors at napagkasunduan nilang tanggalin na si Chito Narvasa bilang commissioner ng liga.
Agad naman itong tinuligsa ng limang koponan, sa pangunguna ng San Miguel Beer, na hindi sumasang-
ayon sa desisyon ng pito.
“They cannot just act on a whim. What they are doing is not in accordance with our by-laws and constitution. All five teams — San Miguel, Ginebra, Star, Kia and Globalport — stand behind commissioner Narvasa. He enjoys our full support and we have prevailed upon him to stay and do what is right,” sabi ni SMB governor Robert Non.
Aniya, ang ginawa ng pitong governor ay hindi sumasang-ayon sa by-laws at constitution ng liga.
“These officials do not constitute the majority needed to remove or appoint the commissioner and thereafter, make any changes in the PBA structure,” dagdag pa ni Non.
Sa ilalim ng alituntunin ng liga, magiging lehitimo lamang ang desisyon ng Board of Governors kung nakakuha ito ng two-thirds vote. At dahil ang PBA ay binubuo na ng 12 koponan ay kailangan nito ng walong boto para makapagbuo ng desisyon.
Hindi nakadalo sa meeting kahapon ang mga governor ng San Miguel Beer, Star, Ginebra, GlobalPort at Kia.
Ayon din sa batas ng liga, ang pagtawag ng isang pagpupulong ay dapat pitong araw bago ito gaganapin. Inanunsiyo ang meeting kahapon nito lamang Oktubre 30 at hindi ito sumang-ayon sa seven (7) day rule ng liga.
“So without this clear majority, all changes being made by these renegade members are not allowed, including the appointment of Rickie Santos as officer-in-charge, and would not be binding on the whole board membership,” dagdag pa ni Non.
“This includes as well the misrepresentation of NLEX board member Ramon Fernandez as PBA chairman, when in fact, the sitting chairman is still Globalport’s Mikee Romero.”
Nag-ugat ang pagkakahati ng Board nang payagan ni Narvasa ang trade sa pagitan ng San Miguel at Kia kung saan nakuha ng Beermen ang top overall pick ng Kia sa katatapos na 2017 Draft at napunta naman sa Picanto sina Ronald Tubid, JayR Reyes, Rashawn McCarthy at ang 2019 first round pick ng SMB.
Ginamit ng Beermen ang naturang pick para mahablot si Christian Standhardinger mula sa rookie draft.
Umalma ang ilang koponan sa trade na ito na sinasabing pumapabor sa San Miguel.
Naglabas din ng pahayag nitong Linggo ang TNT patungkol sa naturang trade at sinabing: “If the commissioner does not see this simple perspective, he may not be the right person for the job. We are afraid as to who should be the custodian of the PBA’s overall paramount interest. He talks about parity/equilibrium for trades, but where is it?”
Sinagot naman ni Narvasa ang paratang ng pitong koponan.
Sabi ni Narvasa, naging patas siya sa kanyang mga desisyon bilang PBA commissioner at wala aniya siyang nilabag na batas ng liga.
“What call for parity are they talking about? I have always ensured parity in all decisions I made as commissioner, not only in the trade involving Kia and San Miguel Beer, but even when Talk ‘N Text acquired the first round picks of Kia and Blackwater in the past to get Mo Tautuua and Troy Rosario,” sabi ni Narvasa.
Duda naman si Narvasa na ang SMB-Kia trade ang tunay na dahilan sa pagnanais ng ilang koponan na siya ay matanggal.
Inamin ni Narvasa na kasalukuyang iniimbistegahan ng kanyang opisina ang kasunduan umano ng TV5, na nagpapalabas ng mga PBA games at pagmamay-ari ng PLDT group, sa isang betting company overseas.
“TV5 made the transaction with the betting company without informing the PBA and denied the league the revenues from the said transaction,” ani Narvasa.
Ipinaliwanag naman ni Narvasa na kung two-thirds ng Board ang bumoto na siya ay maalis ay agad naman siyang bababa sa puwesto pero hanggang hindi ito nangyayari ay patuloy aniya siya sa pagsilbi sa kanyang tungkulin.
“Of course, I can resign but only if majority of the league membership says so. We have rules in the PBA and we should be held hostage to the whims and caprices of a few who just called for my removal because they cannot get what they want,” aniya.
“The Office of the Commissioner is not about one man, but also of the league. Whether it’s me or anyone who becomes commissioner, the Commissioner’s Office should remain free to act in the best interests of the majority, including the fans.”