Basketball sec-gen fears he’s next

Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) secretary-general Graham Lim said yesterday he may be next in line for an assassin’s bullet after Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association (PATAFA) president Go Teng Kok survived an ambush at the Rizal Memorial complex last week.

Lim said the day before Go was shot, his unit in a Binondo apartment building was ransacked by an unidentified man late morning. Lim, his wife and their two children were out when the break-in happened.

Lim said papers from drawers in his office in the unit were scattered on the floor and the bedroom was turned upside down. However, nothing was taken, raising suspicion that it was not a burglary but an attempt to kidnap or murder Lim.

The unit’s elderly caretaker was on an errand when the intruder broke in. She returned to find the man inside the unit whose double locks were forced open. The man threatened the caretaker then left in a huff.

Lim reported the incident to the Binondo police. He said since the BAP experienced a leadership crisis two years ago, he has received threats from anonymous sources. The situation worsened, he continued, when he had a row with the Basketball Referees Commission (BARECOM), resulting in the sacking of certain arbiters.

Lim said he sought the assistance of Efren Meneses, chief of the Anti-Fraud and Computer Crime Division of the National Bureau of Investigation, last April to track down a person who has sent threatening text messages in his cell phone.

Lim said he has also been harassed by certain individuals questioning his Filipino citizenship.

"I hold a legitimate Filipino passport issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs," said Lim. "It has been renewed several times. If there are questions about my citizenship, perhaps they should be addressed to the Department of Foreign Affairs."

Lim came under fire recently after he was appointed National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Commissioner, gaining a 6-2 vote from the board made up of representatives of member schools. Lim’s propriety was put to doubt since he is the BAP secretary-general.

"If I am not a competent official, surely I would not have been voted by the NCAA board," said Lim. "I don’t see a conflict of interest. I am involved in sports for the love of it. I don’t even know if my position as NCAA Commissioner has a salary. I was later told that Mr. Ramon Fernandez was also being considered. I consider it an honor that I was chosen over Mr. Fernandez whom I respect highly. I was also told Mr. Chito Loyzaga was considered but his nomination was withdrawn before the voting."

Lim said he fears that the same mastermind of the Go ambush was behind the break-in of his home. — Joaquin Henson