UAAP to let probe run its course in Ateneo players' drowning incident
At A Glance
- League executive director Atty. Rebo Saguisag disclosed this on Wednesday, June 10, adding that the league has already initiated measures while gathering all relevant information and stressed that proper protocol must be applied to address the sensitive matter.
UAAP executive director Atty. Rebo Saguisag, left, and PSC chairman Patrick Gregorio.
The UAAP is awaiting official reports before determining its next course of action regarding the drowning incident involving Ateneo basketball players Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili.
League executive director Atty. Rebo Saguisag disclosed this on Wednesday, June 10, adding that the league has already initiated measures while gathering all relevant information and stressed that proper protocol must be applied to address the sensitive matter.
“We go where evidence leads. We are in the process of gathering information, waiting for official reports that are undergoing. We are very careful because of the sensitivity of the issue,” said Saguisag.
“We cannot pass on judgment early. Not to trivialize what happened, but elementary due process states that everyone should be heard and the expertise of the agencies be considered,” he added.
The Philippine National Police (PNP), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) are already on course of their investigation on the deaths of Baterbonia and Adili, who drowned during a team-building activity of the Ateneo men’s basketball squad in Aurora.
Saguisag said Ateneo has requested privacy to allow authorities to complete their investigation into the incident and emphasized that the decision on whether to place men's basketball head coach Tab Baldwin under suspension lies within the university's discretion.
He also added it would be premature to discuss or comment regarding the school’s status for the upcoming Season 89, which is set to begin in September.