BCDA vows tighter safety measures in Clark for FIBA bubble

The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) has assured that tighter safety measures will be implemented in Clark, which has been chosen by International Basketball Federation as host of the third and last window of the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 qualifiers.

In a press release, BCDA president and CEO Vince Dizon said during a virtual conference on Saturday: “This is such a great privilege not only for Clark but for the entire country to host one of the qualifiers for FIBA and we want to assure everybody that we will ensure the safety and health of everyone in the bubble.”

He added: “That is the first and most important objective that we have. And building on the success of the PBA bubble, gagawin pa nating mas istrikto at mas safe itong upcoming bubble na ito.” 

READ: Philippines to host final window of FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers in February 2021

Dizon is also the deputy chief implementer of the National Action Plan Against COVID-19 and currently serves as the officer-in-charge for the chairmanship of the Clark Development Corporation (CDC).

Also present during the media briefing are Philippine Basketball Association commissioner Willie Marcial and deputy commissioner Eric Castro, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas president Al Panlilio, executive director Sonny Barrios, and deputy executive director Butch Antonio, and CDC OIC-president and CEO Mariza Mandocdoc.

Dizon cited some of the strict protocols implemented during the PBA bubble which would be heightened for the FIBA qualifiers next year. These include regular testing of the players and other members of the delegation upon entering the bubble and during the games, and the mandatory isolation while waiting for negative RT-PCR test results.

“We will follow the standard testing and isolation protocols for all arriving passengers from abroad. If they turn out positive then they need to go through the mandatory quarantine period and only after they are cleared will they be allowed to be released,” Dizon said.

Apart from these, the PBA bubble protocols include regular sanitation of all facilities, delivery of packed meals to the hotel rooms, and use of the StaySafe.ph application for easier and a more efficient contact tracing.

Panlilio, meanwhile, said that although FIBA would set its own guidelines for the qualifiers, the organization would ensure that it would be closely linked with the existing protocols of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

“What interested FIBA to take a look into this as a bubble is our success in the PBA bubble because we really followed the IATF guidelines, and FIBA has its own guidelines but I think it will be married with the IATF guidelines but I’m sure it’s going to be a very safe venue and that is paramount to all the games to make sure that we are in very safe conditions,” said the SBP president.

All protocols in the FIBA bubble are subject for approval of IATF-EID and the National Task Force Against COVID-19 in coordination with the Regional Task Force. 

READ: Indonesia to host 2021 FIBA Asia Cup

The Philippines will host two groups for the final leg of the continental qualifiers scheduled Feb. 18-22, 2021: Group A, which includes the Philippines, South Korea, Indonesia, and Thailand; and Group C, composed of New Zealand, Australia, Guam, and Hong Kong. 

Apart from the Philippines, Japan and Bahrain were also chosen to host the said qualifiers. – RC, GMA News