AFTER the special PBA board meeting last Feb. 26, members of the media who were at the PBA office in Libis, Quezon City, awaiting the announcement of criteria for the search for a new commissioner to replace outgoing Chito Salud were surprised to learn that the governors did not touch the matter at all.
Instead, they announced that the board had agreed to go through a reorganization, appointing Rain or Shine’s lawyer Mamerto Mondragon, Purefoods Star’s Rene Pardo and incumbent chair Patrick “Pato” Gregorio to a special committee that would study the reorganization and lead the search for a new commissioner.
The board meeting segued to an executive session among the three members, after which the announcement of what transpired was relayed to the media.
The important points, that is.
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During preliminary talks which served as a prelude to the main task of searching for a new commissioner, the board as a collegial body came to realize that it was time for a major reorganization.
“This idea was hatched by the entire board during last Thursday’s meeting. We all reflected that we need to go through a transformation process. We need a succession plan; we need to secure the investment of the owners; we still want to grow … all these as part of our vision as we continuously improve the game and the brand called the PBA,” said chair Pato.
With a reorganization preceding the appointment of a new commissioner, a longer timeline will be required for the task. The hiring of additional personnel is another matter requiring the expertise of an HRD specialist like Pato’s co-governor at Talk ‘N Text, Maynilad chief Ricky Vargas, who used to head this department at PLDT. “The board realized that the PBA has grown really big—12 teams plus two or three more knocking at our doors and another twelve teams in the D-League. This is too much for the PBA commissioner’s office to handle,” the chair said.
If the new PBA office is patterned after the typical corporate setup, how many major divisions, which will need department heads, would it have? Marketing will surely be one. Another—whatever title or name it will go by—concerns officiating.
Or will such a menial but most important task, which causes the most controversy in the league, be the main function of the commissioner?
Salud used to watch the daily double-header from a monitor inside the venue, which could be very tiring to the eyes and the mind.
“Then when he got home, he’d turn off the volume of his TV set and watch again,” disclosed PBA media bureau head Willie Marcial.
Fatigue could be the major reason Salud quit his job.