Palawan State University officials assured that all challenges encountered during the ongoing Southern Tagalog Regional Association of State Universities and Colleges (STRASUC) Olympics will be fully addressed, with a formal statement to be released after the event.
This follows concerns raised by Palawan State University (Palawan SU) athletes on Monday, where they claimed they were not provided with sufficient budgets for their allowances and uniforms.
These complaints surfaced on the first day of the STRASUC Olympics, held at the Edward S. Hagedorn Coliseum from October 21-25, with 12 SUCs from the region competing in the sports festival.
Palawan SU had begun preparations months in advance for over 2,000 athletes, given the logistical challenges of hosting the sports festival in the same month that Puerto Princesa City was also organizing other events, such as the International Dragonboat Tournament.
However, early in the week-long Olympics, Palawan SU student athletes reportedly voiced frustrations, stating that the university had not adequately budgeted for their allowances and uniforms.
“Kasi kung titingnan naman sa uniform ng ibang delegation, hindi talaga sapat yung budget. Sa pagkain, di naman, pero yung isa sa mga [issue] nila ay allowance (…) sabi nila meron daw pero di namin alam kung meron pa ba,” one student athlete, who preferred not to be named, said.
Palawan SU Sports Director Vincent Esguerra assured that the necessary documents for the student budget, including reimbursements for athletes who traveled from campuses outside Puerto Princesa City, would be processed before the end of the sports festival.
Claire Mendoza, Palawan SU’s Public Information Officer (PIO), stated that a formal statement addressing all the challenges encountered during the event would be released after the 2024 STRASUC.
“Busy lang talaga. So far so good naman po, ayun lang inabot tayo ng bagyo. But Palawan SU is doing everything and giving its best to make our delegations enjoy their stay here with us,” she said.
