The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) has requested the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) to schedule an election for the country’s volleyball federation.
POC president Bambol Tolentino said he received a letter from the FIVB last month asking the POC to supervise the National Sports Association’s election before the World Congress to be held online on Feb. 5 to 7.
“Following the letter sent in August 2020 requesting that open and transparent general elections of the Philippine Volleyball National Federation to be organised, we would also like to take this opportunity to kindly ask you to schedule a date as soon as possible for these democratic elections with the participation of all relevant stakeholders,” FIVB General Director Fabio Azevedo wrote in the letter.
Azevedo added “it would be beneficial if the elections occur before the FIVB Congress… to ensure that the results can be presented to the FIVB World Congress.”
Tolentino said the POC will form a committee to supervise the elections being eyed later this month.
The FIVB first wrote Tolentino of this request in August last year.
“Therefore, we will ask all volleyball stakeholders to cooperate and participate in the elections,” Tolentino said after the POC Executive Board meeting on Tuesday.
“The FIVB wanted to recognize a legitimate volleyball NSA before its world congress. It’s urgent. Without a legitimate NSA, we cannot send national teams to FIVB-sanctioned tournaments abroad.”
The FIVB board of administration provisionally affiliated the Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas Inc. based on the Philippine Olympic Committee’s (POC) recognition as the “sole governing body for volleyball in the country.”
The other group is the Philippine Volleyball Federation, which remains “suspended” in the FIVB since 2015.