March 27 ------ PBA commissioner Willie Marcial bared he is exploring the possibility of reviving the PBA Hall of Fame as the league celebrates its 45th season. The amiable executive shared to Spin.ph that he's looking at bringing the illustrious club back to life in line with the league's bid to celebrate its colorful past. "Tinitignan ko yan. Balak ko na ibalik yung Hall of Fame this year kasi 45th season natin," said Marcial.
Forty names, consisting of players, coaches, executives, and mediamen, make up the elite Hall of Fame roster which has not been updated since 2013 during the time of former commissioner Chito Salud. But before the league curates its newest honorees, Marcial said that it's imperative to establish guidelines in choosing the next batch of awardees. Marcial admitted that one of the reasons that the Hall of Fame enshrinement was discontinued was the controversy that followed the selection of the league's 40 Greatest Players in 2015. "Di ba merong mga hindi na-satisfy, so titingnan natin kung paano. Kailangan kasama sa Selection Committee yung mga tao na matagal na natin kasama lalo na doon sa simula pa lang ng PBA. So lahat yun iko-consider natin kung sino sa players, sa media, sa TV, lalo na sa mga pioneers," he said.
The last honorees were Benjie Paras, Ronnie Magsanoc, Lim Eng Beng, and coach Ed Ocampo. "Nagkaroon ng controversy noon kaya natabi. Na-set aside muna hanggang sa nakalimutan na ibalik," he said. "Every two years kasi dapat yan, eh tumigil." Marcial added that he's in favor of selecting future honorees by decade. "Iniisip ko nga baka year-by-year muna. Mula 1975 to 1985 tapos pag wala na doon, tsaka na tayo pumunta doon sa 1985 to 1995, tapos ganun din sa mga susunod. Hindi basta tumatalon-talon agad," he disclosed.
The commissioner said the key is putting in place a credible selection and honors committee. "Kailangan ayusin natin kung paano dapat yung treatment," he said, hoping that the next batch of inductees will be acceptable in the eyes of the public. "Sinasabi ko nga, di naman lahat ng tao masa-satisfy sa listahan eh. Parang James Bond movie yan, may kanya kanya tayo na gusto. Yung iba gusto si Sean Connery, yung iba si Piers Brosnan, yung iba doon na sa bago. "Di mo masa-satisfy lahat ng tao, pero gagawa tayo ng group study kung paano aatakihin at sino ang dapat maging parte ng committee."
Source: spin.ph
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