MANILA, 21 March 2003 — The probe on fake Filipino-foreign players in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) may still drag on.
With the Senate investigation yet to be concluded, there is still a possibility that more Fil-foreign players will be facing deportation.
But the Senate committee on games, amusement and sports has admitted that it’s “not easy” to scrutinize the cagers’ documents.
As a matter of fact, despite the order for deportation of at least five alleged Fil-shams, it seems nobody wants to put in effect.
Unless cases are formally filed against these Fil-shams, the current crop of Fil-foreigners in the league can sit back and relax, continue to play for their respective ballclubs, and simply ignore the prospects of being prosecuted, jailed and later on deported. During the previous hearings, immigration officials have stressed that they cannot work on deportation cases or even start deportation proceedings unless a formal case is filed against any individual.
The Senate committee is still nowhere near a resolution of the issue even as Professional Players Basketball Association’s (PPBA) spokesman Jojo Lastimosa said they could not wait any longer.
The Fil-foreign players under investigation are Mick Pennisi and Davon Harp of Red Bull, Dorian Peña, Danny Seigle and Nick Belasco of San Miguel, John Ordonio, Rob Duat and Ali Peek of Alaska, Asi Taulava and Kenny Evans of Talk ‘N’Text, Eric Menk and Alex Crisano of Ginebra, Chris Jackson, Michael Hrabak and Tony dela Cruz of Shell, Noy Castillo and Andy Seigle of Purefoods, Will Antonio, Jeffrey Cariaso, Rudy Hatfield, Rafi Reavis and Ron Wainwright of Coca-Cola and Jay Jay Helterbrand, James Walkvist and David Friedhoff.
The PPBA said it should be the Bureau of Immigration (BI) which should act on the deportation of suspected illegal Fil-foreign players in the pro league, saying the agency could act on Sen. Robert Barbers’ request.
Barbers, chairman of the Senate committee on games, amusement and sports, also wants the BI to expel Seigle (Purefoods), Hrabak, Wallkvist, Belasco and Duat, who were found improperly documented.
But the BI threw back the ball at the members of the players’ union, claiming a formal complaint is needed before it could start the summary deportation proceedings.
Lastimosa, however, refused to sign his name on the request for the summary deportation of the Fil-shams.
Purefoods team captain and union co-spokesman Alvin Patrimonio, Zaldy Realubit and Bonel Balingit, however, signed the deportation request.
Lastimosa claimed those Fil-shams “were the wrong guys.”
He even expressed regrets over the outcome of the probe revived by Barbers.
The 6’8” Seigle has a Philippine passport but didn’t have a Department of Justice affirmation and Bureau of Investigation identification certificate. The rest doesn’t have ID certificates from the Immigration bureau.
Belasco has been in the country since 1996, the year he was drafted and signed up by the now defunct Pop Cola franchise. Seigle, on the other hand, has been in the PBA since 1997, when he was declared the top rookie pick overall in the draft by Mobiline. Hrabak was drafted and signed by Shell velocity in the 2001 season, while Duat and Wallkvist also joined the PBA in 2000 after playing for Cebu Gems and San Juan Knights in the Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA).
Sen. Barbers, along with committee member Sen. John Osmeña, had already sent out their own agents to verify the authenticity of the papers submitted by the PBA’s Fil-foreign players. The papers of Taulava, Harp and Pennisi, along with that of Hatfield and Menk, are under the watchful eye of the Senate. PBA Commissioner Noli Eala defended the member-teams over the fake Fil-Americans issue, saying he believes the squads protect their integrity and will not go as far as violating league rules. “As far as the PBA is concerned, we will seriously consider the recommendations of the Senate once they come up with the decision on the papers submitted by our Fil-foreign players. For now, whatever papers submitted to us by these players are considered legitimate because they came from the government agencies,” said Eala. “In so far as the alleged proliferation of fake Fil-foreign players are concerned, I don’t think we should blame the teams for the entry of fake Fil-Ams. I do believe all the PBA teams are interested in protecting their integrity and definitely, they won’t violate the PBA rules.
“However, if there really is proof that a Fil-Am has submitted fraudulent documents, then we would take a look into it and take the necessary actions,” explained Eala, who took over the job from PBA commissioner Jun Bernardino early this year.
Eala is determined to clean the image of the pro league as to the Fil-Am issue which have tarnished the PBA in recent years.
He warned of heavy penalties should the league’s 10-member teams fail to weed out Fil-shams even before the ongoing Senate investigation reveals the identities of those posing as Filipinos anytime this month.
Eala has asked the teams to police their own ranks by verifying the citizenship papers of Fil-foreign cagers. Should these Fil-foreign players be proven fake, they should immediately leave the country, according to Eala.
The teams would be penalized should they fail to clean up their ranks following the league’s own investigation. His plan to clean up the pro league of fake Fil-foreign players is a radical move which he hopes would finally stop what he perceives as discrimination to home-grown players.
Interestingly, Eala has plans to present to the PBA Board a proposal to limit the number of Fil-foreigners in each team, to guarantee that only those worthy are taken in.
He wants to limit the number of Fil-Ams per team to three or four each. If a certain team has signed up the maximum number of Fil-Ams, it can no longer draft another.
Limiting the number of Fil-Ams per player may open the door to some more locally-bred cagers bidding to join the PBA.
Only two teams, Sta. Lucia and FedEx, have no Fil-Ams in their rosters. Others, like Alaska, Talk ‘N’Text and Ginebra, have plenty in their lineups.
After the recent rookie draft, where a number of Fil-foreigners were listed by majority of the PBA’s 10 teams, Eala had imposed a residency requirement on foreign-bred Filipinos wanting to make it to the PBA, aside from requiring them to play in any of the country’s amateur leagues before turning professionals. The Philippine Basketball League, the main beneficiary of the new PBA rulings, welcomed Eala’s move while the country’s two leading collegiate leagues — the University Athletic Association of the Philippines and the National Collegiate Athletic Association — would also benefit from the PBA decision.
