Because of recent pool developments in the Philippines, which tend to portray the situation here in Manila as chaotic and messy, I shall devote my column this week to introducing to international readers the Billiards & Snooker Congress of the Philippines (BSCP) – its officers, members, programs and projects.

It dismays us that after three years of staging major national and international tournaments in our country, opening opportunities for Filipino players to play in international competition, and putting the Philippines on the map of international pool, the BSCP and its partner organizations are being brazenly accused of exploiting players and being detrimental to Philippine billiards.

First, some bona fides. The BSCP is the national sports association (NSA) for billiard sports in the Philippines. As such, it is the member for billiards of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC). It is the sole Philippine member of the Asian Pocket Billiards Union (APBU), and through the APBU is part of the system of world pool governance of the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA). It is also the sole Philippine member of the Asian Confederation of Billiard Sports (ACBS), through which it comes under the system presided over by the World Confederation of Billiard Sports (WCBS). These membership links date back many, many years, and we have found these relationships very satisfying and helpful in our work.

It’s useful to note these credentials because sometime this year the Games and Amusement Board (GAB) in our country – on the urging of the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) – tried to wrest Philippine membership in these international bodies from the BSCP. Its chairman wrote the APBU and WPA to inform them that it has the authority to supervise and regulate billiards in our country, and that therefore its invitations to tournaments and the qualifying of Filipino players should henceforth be coursed through it. These claims were rejected. And in Manila, there is wide consensus now that GAB’s authority extends only to games of chance, not to sports.

Organizational Structure
The BSCP comprises the representatives of the many stakeholders of Philippine billiards, including players, promoters, manufacturers, parlor owners, managers and trainers, equipment distributors, referees and technical officials, billiards enthusiasts, fans and sponsors from all over our country of 90 million people. According to an official survey, there are some five million pool players in the country, ranging over all income groups, sexes and age groups. Pool stands with basketball and boxing among the three top Filipino sports.

The association is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as a non-stock, non-profit corporation. The BSCP has within its membership both individuals and corporate members. Local billiard clubs and associations in various parts of the country are among the corporate members.

The present board, officers and members include, among others, the following:

1. Ernesto Fajardo, director and president -- He is the president of the Liberty Investment Inc. and director of several reputable corporations

2. Sebastian Chua, director and treasurer -- He is the president of Star Paper Corporation (the biggest paper distributor in the country), Star Billiards (the distributor of the finest billiard products) and owner of the biggest and finest billiard hall in the country – the Star Billiards Center.

3. Antonio Baranda, member -- He is the president of a public relations company.

4. Amado Diokno, spokesman and program director -- He is the president of Rolling Thunder Productions Inc., a TV and film production outfit.

5. Julius Nidea, secretary-general -- He heads several companies and was until end June the president of a top Rotary Club in Manila.

6. Willie Caballes, director -- He is the deputy sports editor of the Manila Bulletin, the largest newspaper in the Philippines.

7. Arturo Ilagan, director and training program director -- An original founder of BSCP, he is a veteran athlete, well-known sports leader, and a respected name in Philippine sports.

8. Yen Makabenta, board chairman -- I have been chief speechwriter to two Philippine presidents and editor of a newspaper and a weekly magazine. I am currently a newspaper columnist and president of PRISM Communications and Raya Sports.

I cite these personages and their backgrounds to underscore that all of us in BSCP do not make our living from billiards. None of us come from the gambling side of pool. Nor do any of us manage pool players. We are in BSCP because we love the game of pool and we want to do something for Philippine pool.

Beyond these directors and officers, the BSCP counts on individual members, member clubs and cooperators to help discharge the work of the association. These include event organizers, referees and technical personnel, trainers and coaches, player pools, marketing agents, and some media people.

Programs and Projects
The present board, upon election in 2005, embarked on a wide-ranging program for the intensive development of billiard sports in the country believing it was one sport where Filipinos excelled. At the outset, the program included:

1. Holding an annual national championship for men, women and juniors. We are now into the third year of these championships. Before the new board, there was no official national champion.

2. Bringing a world championship event to Manila. We have held two world championships and are now preparing for the World Ten Ball Championship in September. Before the new board, no open international tournaments were held in the country.

3. Establishing a billiards academy for the training and instruction of players. The training of players is ongoing. The instructional program will be on stream this year with funding from the Philippine Sports Commision (PSC).

4. Establishing a national pool tour featuring Filipino and foreign players. We launched the Philippine Pool Tour this year in partnership with city governments in the country. So far we have held two major legs: the Mandaluyong Mayor’s Cup and the Puerto Princesa Mayor’s Cup.

5. Bringing into the country top-quality billiards equipment to upgrade the quality of tournaments, billiard centers and player equipment. Thanks principally to Star Billiards, the finest and most modern equipment may be found in the Philippines today

6. Expanding the sponsorship base for pool. Traditionally, pool sponsorship was limited to liquor and cigarettes. We set before ourselves the objective of attracting new kinds of sponsors who would improve the profile and demographics of the sport. This is now happening.

7. Increasing the international exposure of Filipino players in pool events abroad, particularly the WPA events. When the new board took over, the world knew only Efren Reyes, Francisco Bustamante and Alex Pagaluyan. Mainly because of BSCP efforts, more Filipino players now are known to the world, winning titles in their own right.

8. Introducing billiards as a physical education course in the school system. An agreement is now being drafted with the Department of Education to bring this about. This will end the traditional bias which prohibited the establishment of billiard parlors within 200 meters of Philippine schools.

The overall thrust of this comprehensive program is to promote billiards development among all age groups, all sexes, all skill levels, and all over the country. Our sport is not just about the champions and star players. It is about everyone who plays the game. And it is about planning and preparing for the future of the sport. We submit that we are making a difference in moving forward this agenda.

Issues Raised Against BSCP
A number of false issues have been raised against BSCP and its top officials in order to topple the organization. While these have been answered in many forums here in Manila, it’s useful to restate our position lest our colleagues abroad be misled.

First, it’s been suggested that there is lack of fairness in BSCP’s selection of players for international competition. Nothing could be farther from the truth. We maintain a strict selection and qualifying system for choosing players for international events organized and sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) and Asian Pocket Billiards Union (APBU). Players are chosen according to the criteria of playing ability, current form, competition record, and, not least, capability to represent honorably our organization and our country. The system is open to all Filipino players.

There was some disruption, however, when certain players on the urging of their managers rejected the leadership and governance of the BSCP through a manifesto last February and proclaimed their allegiance to BMPAP. With this action, they took themselves out of the BSCP selection system. They listened to the rival group’s claim that henceforth it would be selecting Filipino players for international competition. When the BMPAP’s claim proved false and the BSCP conducted its qualifiers without their players, the billiards managers loudly complained that the BSCP selection process was not fair and transparent because their players were not included.

The BMPAP players and managers cannot have it both ways. They cannot reject the BSCP as governing body for billiards in our country, and expect at the same time its support and patronage in international competition. They cannot boycott BSCP organized and sanctioned events and yet claim the right to play under its patronage in international events.

Secondly, it’s been suggested that there is a conflict of interest between my being president of Raya Sports and chairman of BSCP. This has no basis in law and in fact. The BSCP is a private association registered with the SEC. Every full-fledged member qualified to vote is qualified to serve in the board of directors and the roster of officers. I am such a member.

There is no contradiction or conflict between my company being engaged in sports promotions and my serving as chair for the BSCP, any more than there is a conflict for other officers who happen to be connected with businesses engaged in the billiards industry. On the contrary, the BSCP encourages all members to do everything they can to organize events and promote pool around the country and it extends its help to them in doing so. This is the practice in international pool associations like the Billiards Congress of America, where the president of Brunswick Billiards is currently its president. Were we to disqualify members with business interests in our sport from serving our association, the BSCP would be inutile.

Conflict of interest is an issue of corporate governance and ethics. If our detractors really believe what they are saying, they would have gone long ago to the SEC instead of just talking about it ad nauseam.

But the whole campaign of the BMPAP is not to get at the truth or legality of acts and policies; it is merely about disrupting and destroying the work of the BSCP and its partner organizations. Its leaders cannot bide what we in BSCP are doing because their own projects – like the pool team league – can’t get off the ground and find sponsors. They cannot thrive unless we get out of billiards.

Well, BSCP is not going anywhere. While BMPAP is solely about three player managers and their 20 or 25 players, the BSCP is about the millions who play and watch the sport in our country. It is about organizing the sport and setting rules and standards for the benefit of all who enjoy billiard sports. It is about nurturing our links with the international pool community so that our players can engage in competition nationally and internationally.

This isn’t just about winning for our country and ourselves. This is about loving our sport and nurturing it for the enjoyment of players and fans alike.