Fix the problem, not the blame

“The Japanese have a saying: ‘Fix the problem, not the blame.’ Find out what’s (screwed) up and fix it. Nobody gets blamed. “ – Sean Connery as Capt.Julius Connor, “Rising Sun”

In response to the two-year suspension meted out by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the leadership of the Philippine Tennis Association (PHILTA) took to finger-pointing. PHILTA president Atty. Antonio Cablitas shrugged off issues raised by the ITF. Instead of answering them, he took to the media to accuse Unified Tennis Philippines (UTP) officials Jean Henri Lhuillier, Julito Villanueva, Gerardo Maronilla and the late Randy Villanueva of being disruptive by filing a complaint with the ITF Independent Tribunal in February in the first place. Upon hearing this, more alarmed tennis stakeholders are clamoring for change and unity, which is what the ITF is asking for.

“The suspension saddens me. It’s useless to point fingers and look for somebody to blame,” rued many-time national team coach Roland Kraut. “Time to put pride on the side and think of only one thing: the tennis players (kids and professionals) who will lose their chance to represent the country in ITF team competitions.”

Does PHILTA mean to say that the ITF simply accepted whatever complaint they received from the aforementioned individuals, and prosecuted PHILTA without getting their side or investigating? To answer this, let’s go back to the actual suspension notice dated Nov. 20 and signed by ITF president David Haggerty.

“It should be noted that PHILTA was given adequate opportunity to engage with the proceedings, including additional time to file its submissions. However, PHILTA did not attend any of the directions hearings scheduled by the Tribunal nor did it file any submissions,” the letter said. “To date, the ITF does not recognize Mr. Antonio Cablitas (who purportedly replaced Mayor Edwin Olivarez) as PHILTA president because Mr. Cablitas’ election, in June 2017, was not, according to the Philippines Olympic Committee (POC), carried out in accordance with POC procedure. Moreover, it is not clear that Mr. Cablitas was a member of PHILTA at the time he was elected and so was not in fact, eligible for election. Despite the ITF’s concerns, Mr. Cablitas has continued to operate as the elected president of PHILTA and has not responded to several requests of the ITF to review PHILTA’s membership register to confirm whether Mr. Cablitas was a member at the time of his election.”

ITF gave a deadline for creating more inclusive membership and holding legitimate elections within 2021. Cablitas claims that he can get it done by January, with the exclusion of Lhuillier and company, without answering the issues raised. To the contrary of what is needed (inclusiveness and unity), his statements are sowing more division. And still, the issues which brought about the ITF suspension are deflected and ignored.

Fix the problem. Don’t affix the blame.