FILE–San Miguel’s Daniel De Guzman. PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—San Miguel bench player Daniel De Guzman could see his professional license revoked if it’s proven that he’s involved in a game-fixing scandal, Games and Amusements Board Chairman Abraham “Baham” Mitra said Wednesday.
De Guzman is implicated in an alleged game-fixing deal that has since become viral on Facebook.
A certain Nai Nuelan alleged that De Guzman gave “tips” on the Beermen’s games and his post went viral after the bench player provided a wrong “tip” regarding San Miguel’s 111-102 win over Barangay Ginebra in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup.
Mitra said that De Guzman remains innocent until proven guilty but GAB would not hesitate to revoke the player’s licenese if he’s indeed involved in any illicit deals.
“As of now, unless proven guilty, he’s presumed innocent,” said Mitra. “But once proven he could be revoked of his license.”
GAB has already summoned De Guzman to explain the allegations made against him with the government body’s Professional Sports Division setting up a meeting on Friday via Zoom.
Dioscoro B. Bautista, Chief of GAB’s Professional Sports Division, was the one who summoned De Guzman so that the player can “shed light on the matter.”
De Guzman was the 42nd overall pick in the 2019 PBA Draft with San Miguel selecting him from Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology.