Rene Baterbonia's mother says apology not enough after Tab Baldwin breaks silence

The mother of late basketball player Rene Baterbonia, Rovelyn, said an apology is not enough after Ateneo de Manila University men’s basketball head coach Tab Baldwin broke his silence on Friday and apologized following her son's death.

In a Facebook post on Saturday, Rovelyn shared her sentiments regarding Baldwin’s video statement.

“Hindi kaya ng apologies ang kamatayan ng aking anak para sa kaalaman mo. Ang aking gusto ay ipahayag ninyo kung ano talaga ang nangyari,” a Filipino translation of her post said.

(Apologies are not enough for the death of my child. What I want is for you to tell me what really happened.)

“Bakit n’yo sasabihin na accident lang ang nangyari sa aking anak? Ipagpalagay natin na accident lang pero hindi ninyo ako in-update kung anong nangyari.”

(Why are you telling what happened to my son was an accident? Let’s say it was an accident, but you did not update me on what happened.)

“Nag-post na kayo sa social media na patay na ang aking anak pero wala pa kayong sinend sa akin na picture na pagpapatunay na patay na ang aking anak,” she added.

(You already posted on social media that my son has died, but you did not send me a picture to prove his death.)

On Friday, Baldwin apologized for what happened.

“I'm sorry. To the depth of my being, I'm sorry,” Baldwin said.

READ MORE | Tab Baldwin speaks up about Baterbonia, Adili deaths: 'To the depth of my being, I'm sorry'

The Blue Eagles head coach also acknowledged the magnitude of the grief being experienced by the families of the late players.

“We're carrying immense remorse. But I've known since the moment that I was told that our boys had passed away, that no matter the magnitude of our grief, there were two families that experienced a loss that was so much greater than ours, and a loss that would stay with them in the most acute way for the remainder of their lives. Never again would Rene's mother and father and family, never again would Divine's family be able to talk to their son or touch their son.”

It was Baldwin’s first public statement regarding the tragic incident, which also claimed the life of Divine Adili.

—JKC, GMA News