A permanent working place for the Philippine Olympic Committee is one of the priorities of Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino as he begins the first of his four-year full term as head of the country’s Olympic body.
The 56-year-old Tolentino noted how in its 110-year history, the POC has not had an office building of its own, which should not be the case given its stature as the highest Olympic sports body in the Philippines.
Currently, the POC is holding office at the Philsports Complex in Pasig. Prior to that, it was based for a long time at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
Tolentino wants to change all that and give the body a new image.
“Para naman may disenteng mukha ang POC,” said the POC chief in the first session of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) webcast Forum for 2021 on Tuesday.
“Mabigat mang sabihin, we’re not informal settlers, pero nakikitira lang kami sa POC the past years sa facilities ng PSC. Malungkot mang sabihin, baka isa sa buong mundo, o sa Asya o kaya sa ASEAN, unlike other countries, ang Pilipinas lang ang walang permanent office building ang POC.”
Tolentino is concerned about how expensive available lots are within Metro Manila right now that he’s eyeing to have the office building be located in a government property area instead.
In particular, he had his eyes set at any of the vacant lots around the Cultural Center of the Philippines complex.
“Sa CCP meron pa diyan. Ano ba naman yung 1,000 square meters ang ibigay ninyo. Kami na sa POC ang magpapagawa ng building diyan. May space pa doon sa Coconut Palace or sa (Manila) Film Center,” said the POC president, who also represents in Congress the eighth district of Cavite.
“I don’t know kung paano because that’s government to private, but we can design a good, permanent building there.”
Tolentino didn’t mince word about his plan to bring up the matter to President Duterte through Senator Bong Go.
“It’s just a matter of coordinating with sports-minded government officials,” he said.
The POC was first established in 1911 and was then known as the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation (PAAF).
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