Barrios airs two-cents worth on who’ll be commissioner

By Joel Orellana
Business Mirror
October 30, 2007

If he has his way, Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) officer-in-charge Renauld “Sonny” Barrios will go for someone who has the familiarity in the ins and outs of the league.

But of course, this is just his two cents worth for the search committee which is tasked to look for a permanent commissioner of the league as Barrios’s term would end after the Philippine Cup—or end of February next year to be exact.

“Otherwise, hahaba ang learning curve kung bagito. But I’m not saying it can’t be done pero mas maganda sana kung ‘yung susunod na commissioner ay very familiar sa PBA,” Barrios told the BusinessMirror yesterday.

“But I don’t want to preempt the board about the specifics of what will transpire in that meeting,” Barrios added.

The OIC is citing the occurrences in the history of the league, which started when founding chairman Leopoldo Prieto asked Atty. Rudy Salud to take his job after he retired in 1983. Salud begged off, according to Barrios, as the former felt he still lacked experience and he had high respect for the position.

Mariano Yenko then took the commissionership and stepped down in 1988. This time, Salud was ready and became one until 1991. Salud asked the late Jun Bernardino, then the executive director, if he was interested in the job but also declined, citing also the lack of experience.

Rey Marquez took over from 1992 to 1993 before Bernardino came into the picture in 1994 up to 2002.

“Marami ang hindi nakakaalam na Jun B. asked Mr. Marquez kung pwede pa siyang mag-stay ng isa pang taon pero desidido na ‘yung mama [Marquez] kaya at age 46, Jun B was the youngest commissioner of the PBA then,” Barrios explained.

“Kaya for me, importante talaga ang familiarity ng susunod na commissioner sa PBA,” he added.

The search committee, headed by PBA board chairman Tony Chua, meets next week probably to lay down the criteria for their hunt for the next boss of Asia’s first play-for-pay loop.

Barrios, who was asked by former board chairman Ricky Vargas to run the league in OIC capacity after Noli Eala’s unexpected resignation, will also be there in the meeting to help the board in mapping out their plans.

“Ex-officio member lang ako ng search committee probably for reference. I’m not really looking beyond at this point. I really hope that the board can name the permanent commissioner before the end of the conference,” he said.

Barrios confirmed some reports that there are teams in the PBA that are asking him to stay and finish the whole season, but he already committed to his family that he will step down after his six-month tenure is over.

There are already names being eyed for the position and that includes former basketball greats Robert Jaworski and Freddie Webb, Lambert Ramos and Chito Salud, son for former PBA commissioner Rudy Salud and Barrios’ legal counsel.