PHILIPPINE Sports Commission Butch Ramirez has reminded some of the country’s Southeast Asian Games medalists and national coaches feeling the pinch due to the novel coronavirus pandemic that they still have to get their respective bonuses from the government sports agency.
“PSC chairman William Ramirez told his staff to complete the documentation and other requirements of those who still have not gotten their cash incentives for the 30th SEA Games, especially during these hard times,” said PSC deputy executive director Atty. Guillermo Iroy. “Those checks are now available at the PSC cashier.”
Iroy said that among those who still have to get their incentives are medalists in regular and 3×3 basketball, swimming, football, cycling, fencing, baseball, e-sports, beach handball, golf, ice skating, ice hockey, modern pentathlon, polo, rowing, sambo, shooting, triathlon, weightlifting and kurash.
Among the coaches who still have to get their bonuses come from the disciplines of dragon boat, modern pentathlon, volleyball, kick boxing softball and weightlifting, according to Iroy.
“Some of the NSAs still have to fulfill the requirements so the PSC is unable to process the (incentive) checks,” Iroy said.
He reiterated the conditions on how coaches can get their bonuses: that they have coached the winning athlete six months prior to an international competition such as the SEA Games, a certification from the medalist involved, and properly certified and authenticated by the National Sports Association.
In the case of modern pentathlon, Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez, who heads the NSA, said the PSC wants the athletes to come over and get them personally, which is not possible at this time since all of them are based in Ormoc.
“Traveling to Manila to get the checks is difficult at present so our athletes cannot get them personally,” said Gomez, whose campaigners went home with two gold, one silver and two bronze medals in the discipline that made its SEA Games debut last December.
“Hopefully, the PSC could send these checks to us in Ormoc and the NSA as well as the athletes can properly acknowledge that they have received them,” he said.
Skateboarding and Roller Sports Association of the Philippines, Inc. president Carlo Sombrano said he is facing a similar predicament with national streetskate coach Dani Bautista, who is based in Cebu together with SEA Games double gold medalist Margielyn Arda Didal.
With each SEA Games gold worth P300,000 and a total of P600,000 in bonuses that Didal got for the two goals, Bautista is entitled to half of that amount or P300,000.
“After they came from overseas, coach Dani and Margie went straight to Cebu and underwent quarantine; now that Cebu is in lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the coach is unable to come to Manila and get his check,” Sombrano said.
“Hopefully the PSC can send the checks by courier service or whatever means so that our coaches can get them considering that we all need money right now.”