IN Morocco last week, students and other youth took to the streets in anti-government protests, driven by frustration and rage over the country’s massive spending in the buildup for the co-hosting the 2030 football World Cup.
Amid the backdrop of demonstrators calling for better schools and hospitals and decrying the abject state of public services, three demonstrators were killed.
In the Philippines in recent weeks, P2 billion was spent for hosting a 17-day FIVB World Men’s Volleyball Championship, and not a squeak was heard from students and other activists, despite the exploding case of high-level corruption in the country’s flood-control projects.
One week after, nobody remembers the championship. Except, one supposes, event organizers who, despite dismal attendance at the games, made a bid to host another world championship, albeit of women’s volleyball.
The even bigger surprise is that the world body of volleyball, the FIVB, approved the bid even when its top officials personally witnessed the very sorry reception and the media criticism of a championship played to empty stadium seats and scandalous ticket prices that became the subject of criticism in a Senate privilege speech.
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I suspect the FIVB officials must have been treated so well that they turned a blind eye to the games that tanked. Besides, far more enticing is the huge hosting fee that will again boost their coffers.
At the center of it all is Ramon “Tats” Suzara, president of the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), organizer of the FIVB Men’s World Volleyball Championship. Despite having just presided over a flop that cost billions, he merrily committed the nation to another multibillion-peso activity that, exactly like the first, has the pittance of a chance of getting a return on investment.
But who can blame the guy? Like many officials high and low, he is enamored with global attention and thus sees great merit in spending our taxes on a deal that gives no benefit beyond promotions.
He likes the circus and, to bring the games and hoopla in, does not mind playing the jester.
Clearly, this is a man untouched by the horrific earthquake in Cebu some days ago that killed 68 people and counting, and unmoved by the idea that the billions he is throwing on volleyball can go to bringing real hope to a devastated people.
The women’s championship will definitely cost another billions of pesos, with the hosting fee alone likely to match the $25 million (P1.4 billion) that the Philippines paid to FIVB so that we could host the last men’s world championship — but does Suzara care?
And why would he, when a Senate resolution just extolled him — it blows the mind! — for the alleged success of a volleyball championship.
The proponents are the usual suspects: Senators Peter Alan Cayetano, his sister Pia Cayetano, and Bong Go. They also happen to be members of the organizing committee of the FIVB championship, and, not very incidentally, the same people involved in the P7 billion Manila Southeast Asian Games, whose most infuriating achievement is a P50 million-cauldron used just once.
Scandalously expensive
If you think the country's flood control program is infuriating, try this other one: the sponsorship and promotion of scandalously expensive sports events using mostly taxpayer money.
As far as we know, there is not even a proper accounting of government funds spent for the 2019 SEA Games — that is a count of six years!!! after — and auditing this just-ended world volleyball championship will probably take another six years.
So, looking at Morocco, we can only stand in awe of its citizens’ rage and resolve. Their youth are risking their lives to tell their government they’ve had enough! We’ve seen the stirrings of that rage in our own streets as our people marched against the misuse of their taxes in ghost flood-control projects. One day, we hope to see our people recognize our taxes being just as abused in these games.
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