NCAA spotlight
on PCU Dolphins

BY ALDRIN QUINTO

COLLEGE of St. Benilde was supposed to merely turn over the NCAA hosting chores to Jose Rizal College yesterday at the CSB Hotel in Manila but the turnover rites was pushed into the background as the league finally addressed allegations of ineligible players reportedly fielded by Philippine Christian University in the just-concluded 82nd season.

More than a handful of supposedly ineligible players have reportedly been fielded by the Dolphins in different fronts in the NCAA, particularly in juniors’ basketball, taekwondo and athletics, putting a big question mark on the school’s impressive drive to the overall title twice in the past three years.

In response to these allegations, NCAA management committee chairman Henry Atayde of CSB said a formal inquiry has been launched to get to the bottom of things.

"Not only one or two alleged violations or names have been coming out. If this was just one or two names, probably I won’t even mind it. But too many names have been coming out. We don’t want what happened to the UAAP to happen to the NCAA. PCU is our family," Atayde said.

Although no member-school has filed any protest regarding the alleged indiscretion of PCU, a committee led by Ding Lozano of Mapua and Mike del Mundo of University of Perpetual Help has been formed to look into the allegations.

Specifically, the committee will look into allegations that a certain PCU player played for the team using the documents submitted by a younger brother, an alleged "identify-switching" scheme.

Other cases that Atayde refused to specify will be investigated by Frank Gusi of San Sebastian and Vic Calvo of Letran.

The names of the alleged ineligible players were withheld pending the investigation. Under NCAA rules, false representation will be dealt with severely, either by being barred from future NCAA tournaments or forfeiture of won games.