Trillanes pushes for creation of Department of Sports

The creation of the Department of Sports got important nods Thursday, as Senator Antonio Trillanes IV discussed the provisions of SB 3092: "An act creating the Department of Sports," with several key stakeholders from the realm of sports. "A culture of sports is a lifestyle. People who engage in sports become better leaders," said Trillanes, who is pushing to have a separate department for sports. Included in the bill is the creation of the Amateur Sports Development Bureau, that hopes to address grassroots development in the county. Also included was the International Sports Development Bureau, that will take care of the training and development of athletes for international competitions. "This will be a challenge. The president is not a sportsman. We will need a lot of convincing. Once we do that, the DBM [Department of Budget and Management] will follow," said the Senator, who proposes that 400 million be allocated for the department in its initial year of operation. Present in the hearing were International Olympic Committee member Francisco Elizalde, Philippine Sports Commission chairman Ricardo Garcia, Bacolod Congressman Monico Puentevella, Department of Education Assistant Secretary Antonio Umali, Philippine Fencing Association president Victor Africa, and Civil Service Commission director Prisco Rivera. - AMD, GMA News