Aquino, PBA fan willing to settle issue amicably

MANILA, Philippines - Sta. Lucia center Marlou Aquino and PBA fan Jitesh Gidwani have agreed to sit down, hopefully to iron out their differences resulting from an ugly ringside altercation they had last week at the Araneta Coliseum.

A friend of the Indian national who claimed that the 6-foot-9 Aquino punched him after he had a spat with the player’s daughter already met with Sta. Lucia team manager Buddy Encarnado Saturday.

“I met Buddy Encarnado and we sat down for a few hours and had a very pleasant discussion,” said Dilip Budhrani, vice president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce in the Philippines.

“I asked Marlou and his daughter to kindly give me a first hand account of the events that led to the mauling, which they agreed to. I think matters will be resolved,” said Budhrani, also the commissioner of the Filipino-Indian Basketball League.

Gidwani, 24, born and raised in the Philippines and educated in Australia, said he’s looking forward to the meeting with the PBA superstar who was fined by the PBA P20,000 because of the unfortunate incident.

“I’m not sure when it would take place but I’d like to meet him soon to understand better why he did that,” said Gidwani, adding that all he wanted on that night “was to have fun, relax and enjoy the game.”

Gidwani also claimed that Encarnado, the former PBA chairman, was one of those who attacked him. But the respected PBA official has denied this, saying he only tried to stop the fan from leaving the scene.

Gidwani has asked the PBA as well as the Games and Amusements Board to conduct a clearer investigation. – Abac Cordero