PBA:Three’s not company

Though it did not go the way Purefoods had hoped for, the 13-year old PBA franchise got a new lease on life last night when the PBA board of governors allowed its continued stay in the league until the end of the 2002 season.

"The board has agreed for the continued stay of Purefoods and what we did was a good resolution to the issue, Purefoods having been a good citizen of the league," said PBA chair Ignatius Yenko after a meeting that lasted more than two hours at the Manila Golf Club.

At the end of the 2002 season, Purefoods, a company recently acquired by San Miguel Corp., will have a choice of either selling the franchise or disbanding the team.

The disbandment issue, however, will still have to go through the board because it would lead to a lot of complications.

Under the PBA constitution, no company can own more than two teams in the league. SMC as it is already has two teams under its wings — San Miguel Beer and Ginebra.

For Purefoods to stay on indefinitely it would need two-thirds of the votes of the nine members or six of nine. Apparently, Purefoods failed to muster the votes, leading to the board decision to grant just a one-year extension.

In an earlier board meeting, Purefoods was allowed to stay in the league up to the end of this year provided that it gave up its right to vote within the board and that there would be no direct trading among the three teams under the SMC umbrella.

"The fact that Purefoods was allowed to stay until the end of the season was a decision made by the PBA because it is not practical to disband or let go of a team midyear. This extension was made by the board," said acting PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios.

Almost two hours into the meeting, former chairman and Alaska board representative Wilfred Uytengsu suddenly walked out of the room, saying he left the meeting because "the discussions were getting out of hand."

Uytengsu, hinting that the board had already agreed to approve Purefoods’ continued stay in the league even before the voting took place, added "our constitution limits one company to two teams. So how can we discuss this issue when it is in violation of the constitution. I’m just making sure that due process is followed."

Uytengsu said that it would have been proper for the constitution to be amended first before the issue is tackled.

"It is not the question of whether I’m for Purefoods or not, but we should do the right thing and follow the constitution. That‘s the principle I’m standing behind," said Uytengsu.

" I don't think there was any violation. What was granted Purefoods was a special accommodation and we took into account what Mr. Uytengsu said during the discussion," said Yenko.