Ateneo faculty calls for 'sincere and humane' apology, clarity from officials amid drowning tragedy

Faculty members from the Ateneo de Manila University wrote an open letter to university president Fr. Roberto Yap, SJ calling for clarity and transparency in the wake of the drowning tragedy of Ateneo student-athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili.

READ MORE | Ateneo recruit Rene Baterbonia, foreign student athlete Divine Adili die in drowning incident

The letter, signed by over a hundred educators from the school, expressed grief over the incident while also seeking answers.

It also appealed for “sincere and humane expressions of apology, empathy, and compassion” from the school’s leaders and coaching staff.

“The nameless, faceless, and sterile official social media posts have downplayed the gravity of the situation and the accountability of the University,” the letter said.

“We appeal for the University administration and coaching staff to come forward - in person - with humility and acknowledgement of wrongdoing and lapses in judgment, risk mitigation, communication, and most especially, care for our students.”

The letter brought up questions about whether parents were duly informed of the nature of the activity, if safety measures were in place, steps were made to support families and teammates, and why officials have not come forward sooner.

It also asked clarification on whether the leaves of absence for head coach Tab Baldwin and team manager Epok Quimpo were preventive suspensions, which they said was standard operating procedure in cases such as this.

On Thursday, the school announced that Baldwin and Quimpo were 'on leave' as the university conducts an inquiry regarding the incident. The university also said they had requested Baldwin to “refrain from making public statements to allow the official processes to proceed and the facts to be established before any public discussion of the matter.”

—JMB, GMA News