To the Basketball Association of the Philippines: Stop this madness right now!

To the Basketball Association of the Philippines: Stop this madness right now!

We, the undersigned, are petitioning the Basketball Association of the Philippines to stop meddling with the affairs of the Philippine basketball community.

Throughout its years of existence, the BAP has not done anything concrete for the betterment of the sport in the country. It has been consistently sending teams composed of has-beens and third-tier players from unknown leagues to represent the Philippines in international competitions. The BAP also has no grassroots presence, except for pocket tournaments few and far between. The Youth program, formerly the pride of the country, has been tarnished by recent debacles.

Recently, it has been taken over by politicians seeking to further their ambitions, and who know next to nothing about the state of the sport in the country. The names Pichay and Villafuerte, both traditional politicians, are involved. Also with the discredited BAP is Graham Lim, who was declared an undesirable alien by the local courts but has yet to be deported.

The Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas, on the other hand, has been formulating a massive grassroots development program starting from the Youth Level up to the qualifiers for the World Championships and Olympics. The teams it has been sending have been faring much better than the mediocre BAP-assembled teams.

Recently, the BAP took the issue to a Manila court, who ruled that the SBP was not the legitimate association for the sport. This is contrary to the principles of sport, and of the Tokyo and Bangkok Communiques which were signed by representatives of both the BAP and the SBP precursor, Pilipinas Basketball, prior to the birth of SBP.

We, the undersigned, do not agree with the route that the BAP has taken and continues to take. Philippine basketball can only get better; the BAP is getting in the way of its development.

STOP BAP NOW!