WILL the NCAA follow the UAAP?
The 96th season of the country’s oldest league will push through, for now.
This was bared yesterday by a highly-reliable Malaya-Business Insight source, who insisted the NCAA is working hard to salvage its coming season.
“As of the end of last week and over the weekend, tuloy kami. Wala kaming pinag-uusapan na cancelation,” the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
“Ang pinupukpok namin ngayon ay iyong schedule since iyong basketball, volleyball and other events are still awaiting the IATF go-signal. Ang PSC naman and CHED ay nag-submit na ng kanilang rekomendasyon. Waiting pa rin sila sa sagot ni IATF.”
The UAAP officially scrapped its 83rd season last Dec. 11 due to the health perils and uncertainties brought about by the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic.
The source said while waiting for the green light from the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, the league is working on how online events could be held.
“So anong events ang puwede until such time na we get the go-signal? Iyong online chess, Esports, iyon ang puwedeng gawin muna for the meantime. Iyon ang pinag-uusapan namin ngayon,” the source said.
“With or without the go-signal from the IATF for the other events, talagang isusulong namin iyan, iyong online chess, actually nabalangkas na namin iyong format and ground rules, hinihintay na lang namin iyong dissemination to the schools, kung ano kalalabasan kasi hindi rin naman full schedule iyong online chess.”
Management Committee chair Fr. Vic Calvo, OP, of host Letran said the league is set to only have the four mandatory sports — basketball, volleyball, swimming, and track and field — in the second quarter next year under a school-based concept bubble.
The NCAA is seriously mulling its option to hold the season under a school-based bubble concept, according to the source.
“Iyong school-based bubbles, actually iyon lang ang kino-consider namin kasi iyong sa PBA (bubble), mahal iyon, sobrang gastos noon,” the source said.
“Iyong school-based bubbles, seryoso kami doon, we’re considering but again waiting pa rin kami sa IATF.”
The remainder of the 95th season was called off for good mid-March at the start of the stringent government-imposed health and safety protocols to stem the spread of the lethal pulmonary disease caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
