Nat’l players wary over volley leadership row

MANILA, Philippines - Members of the Philippine men and women’s volleyball teams hope they would be spared of the current leadership problem hounding the Philippine Volleyball Federation as they start focusing on preparations for next year’s Southeast Asian Games in Singapore.

Team captains Rachel Ann Daquis and Jessie Lopez both expressed disappointment about the current internal problem within the federation at a time when teams for the 2015 SEA Games had already been formed.

The Singapore stint will be the first for the national men and women’s teams in the biennial meet since the 2005 edition of the SEA Games in Manila.

“We want to serve the country well but this will surely affect the players preparation,” said Daquis during yesterday PSA Forum.

Majority of the national team members showed up at the forum presented by Shakey’s, Accel, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., including Gretchen Ho and Michelle Datuin, along with men’s coach Ogie Mamon, women’s assistant coach Ariel dela Cruz, and embattled PVF secretary-general Otie Camangian.

The PVF currently has two sets of officers with the same president in Karl Chan, although the Philippine Olympic Committee has yet to formally recognized any of the two factions.

The other group, which claimed to be the remaining duly elected members of the PVF board of directors under then president on-leave Gener Dungo, held a special board meeting last Sunday where vacancies within the board were filled up and the subsequent election of officers within the important positions in the federation.

As vice president, Chan assumed the presidency following Dungo’s indefinite leave.  

National team players however, questioned the timing of the board meeting and the election of officers.

“Ayaw naming sabihin na nanggugulo, pero bakit ngayon lang,” said Datuin. “Nung nag-uumpisa pa lang kami, dapat doon pa lang. Kay asana tigilan na yang political drama na yan.”

“Ngayon lang tayo naging united and tapos sisirain pa. It doesn’t make sense to me,” said Ho, who admitted having second thoughts earlier of joining the national team tryouts for lack of an organized system within the federation.

“Ano `yung purpose (of the board meeting)? Why now na buo na ang lahat?”

But Mamon still maintains a positive thinking despite all the leadership trouble within the PVF.

“Walang problema sa mindset ng mga players. Focus sila sa SEA Games and other tournaments,” he said. “I always try to motivate the players not to get affected by all of this.”