BAPI is legitimate nat’l cage body

The courts have recognized the Basketball Association of the Philippines, Inc. (BAPI), headed by then Secretary General Nicanor Jorge, as the legitimate national organization for basketball.

The Court of Appeals recently dismissed the case filed by former Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) president Godofredo Jalasco against BAPI, effectively nullifying the existence of the BAP which, the court ruled, is one and the same as the legal BAPI.

The Court of Appeals’ 13th Division headed by Associate Justice Martin Villarama Jr. also upheld the decision of Manila RTC Branch 12 declaring Jorge’s BAPI as the rightful Basketball Association of the Philippines when it issued the verdict it promulgated as final and executory last Aug. 14.

The court’s decision also maintained status quo in the BAPI prior to the Aug. 14, 1995 elections called by former BAP president Gonzalo "Lito" Puyat, wherein Puyat quit the presidency in favor of Jalasco but appointed himself as chairman, a new position in the BAP.

The 1995 BAP election, however, was effectively nullified by the court, which ruled that BAP now exists as the BAPI following its incorporation with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Dec. 22, 1994 with Jorge, Puyat, Augusto Villanueva, Lucrecio Calo and Rolando Omampo as incorporators.

The BAPI’s registration with the SEC was in relation to a government order requiring all National Sports Associations (NSAs) to acquire a legal personality for them to be able to receive financial assistance from the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

The order, otherwise known as the "Lina rider", was promulgated as part of the General Appropriations Act of 1994. Most NSAs have so far incorporated with the SEC despite an earlier opposition from some NSA leaders and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC).

The case dragged on for years since the lower court dismissed Jalasco’s complaint on July 20, 2001 for lack of merit. Jalasco, however, elevated the case to the Supreme Court, which reverted it to the Court of Appeals for proper final action.

"The courts have ruled and it is now up to the PSC and the POC to recognize the court order, which is part of the rule of the land which everyone of us must uphold," Jorge said.