11 directors endorse Romero's candidacy

MANILA, Philippines - In an effort to fill the leadership vacuum, 11 directors have joined forces and signed a letter of support, endorsing Harbour Centre CEO Mikee Romero to become the new president the Philippine National Shooting Association (PNSA).

The 11 directors – coming from various aggrupations of one of the biggest and active sports associations in the country – are confident of installing Romero as the replacement for long-time president Art Macapagal, the two-time Olympian who recently resigned from his post.

Since Romero is life-time member of the Moving Target Association, the directors are hopeful that Romero’s election to the Board will be ratified when members of the Board meet tomorrow.

The MTA, chaired by James Chua, had earlier nominated Romero as member of the Board following the resignation of Adel Samson as well as the waivers of multi-titled Jaime Recio and Jerry Sun as members of the MTA committee.

To demonstrate their support, more than majority of the MTA members, including Olympian Jethro Dionisio, have signed the petition in view of Romero’s veritable contributions to the association as well as the prestige he has brought to the local and international competitions.

After the 11 directors signed the manifesto, Romero immediately met Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Jose “Peping” Cojuangco last Thursday where he was given the chance to discuss his programs if he will be elected as PNSA president.

“It was a positive meeting and I like to thank Mr. Cojuangco for his candid thoughts and for sharing his vast sports experience to me,” said Romero, the “godfather” of the Philippine basketball team that won the gold medal in the 2007 SEA Games.

Among the solid backers of Romero are pistol group of Tac Padilla and the rifle aggrupation of Col. Danilo Gamboa.

Even Macapagal is also backing the candidacy of Romero who is not only supporting basketball and shooting but also baseball. He is also the co-team owner of the Philippine Patriots – the inaugural champion of the ASEAN Basketball League.

“With the Southeast Asian Games just around the corner, we need a leader who has a fresh outlook and Mr. Romero, we believe, can help to revitalize the sport we all love,” said Gamboa.

Given the opportunity to serve and lead the PNSA, Romero intends to further invigorate the association and make the sport a regular fixture in both the UAAP and NCAA calendar in a bid to generate talents capable of winning in the Olympics.

“It’s very hard to win a medal in the Olympics, but if we will unite for the country’s sake, then we have a good chance of producing an Olympic winner,” said Romero. “We also intend to stage more tournaments here and more foreign exposures for our shooters,” he added.