CHICAGO — If the goal was to duck the storm by simply letting time do its healing magic and allow the news cycle to turn, the playbook failed.
Badly.
The deaths of Blue Eagles players Divine Adili and Rene Baterbonia was a tragedy that demanded immediate answers.
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Ateneo, by its own admission, chose silence instead, for the players and coaches involved in the Dipaculao, Aurora excursion that led to the drownings to the school itself.
The edict created a terrible impression that the Jesuit school prioritized self- preservation and image protection over transparency.
MUM’S THE WORD.
The silence was anything but golden, it spiraled into a PR catastrophe where the criticism against the university were swift and fierce.
“I don’t understand how they dropped the ball on this one. Ang dami pa namang bright boys dyan,” an Ateneo celebrity-athlete alumna told me on Sunday.
Indeed, it is so puzzling how a prestigious institution known for unleashing mental giants as pillars of our community can be so elementary in its approach to crisis management.
In fairness, though, I don’t think the athletics department has ever dealt with a case where coffins became a required equipment.
The people tasked to handle the nuclear fallout that mushroomed after the incident were reminded that textbooks on a course in AB Communication can only be a guide.
A LITTLE KINDNESS GOES A LONG WAY.
In real life tragedies, it’s the simple acts of humanity that will light the dark days.
As a parent who lost a daughter when she was only 16, I know too well the raw and unceasing pain Baterbonia’s mom is going through.
Answers to life’s mysteries tend to take time to unravel, and when it can’t be provided, there are other means to placate the anguish of someone who suffered unfathomable loss.
A sympathetic shoulder to lean on. A helping hand. And the assurance that they’re not alone.
Instead, Rovelyn Baterbonia felt isolated, and her anger fueled a rage that echoed across the entire nation.
One week after the tragedy, Ateneo, through president Bobby Yap, SJ, did not only offer a sincere mea culpa. The university pledged to provide financial support to the Adili and Baterbonia families.
It shows that while they are prone to mistakes just like us, Ateneo is teeming with good people with good intentions.
How can we not forgive?
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