Monday, November 10, 2014

PFF and Cynicism

Some of us terrace lads have friends on other international football scenes. For example, we, from the local Manila scene like to exchange terrace stories with football casuals of Selangor of Malaysia, FC Sion of Switzerland and even a lad from Union Berlin (who went all the way from Dresden, Germany to watch games in Manila).
We exchange stories about the local happenings of our respective leagues (be it positive or not), and we always come up with this conclusion: "Every football governing body hate active support."

So, back to the local scene. September. 2014 Peace Cup in Manila.

Philippine Football Federation, in their short-sightedness, published their 'PFF Stadium Code of Conduct'  during for the tournament. For those who haven't read the PFF's Code of Conduct, it's the DOs and DON'Ts while watching games at RMS. It's just a bunch of rules banning drums, flags, banners. Technically it tells you to shut yer yammer, sit down, and just watch the goddamned game.

Some journos and other personalities in the local scene cried foul on the Code of Conduct, seeing that the Code of Conduct is a surefire way of making the atmopshere stale and dead inside Rizal Memorial Stadium. But PFF again doesn't care, because they're a bureaucracy, they don't like things that doesn't concern football at all, like for this instance, active support.

During the Peace Cup, we were supporting with hands behind our backs, meaning that we can't even bring in flags that we can wave, let alone patriotic banners. It's a shitty gig in our case, because PFF doesn't realize the potential of supporters in the terraces.

MEETING UP WITH PFF BIGWIGS


Cyril Dofitas, the one holding the microphone
So we decided to meet someone on PFF to finally clarify our intent to bring in flags, banners, tifos inside Rizal Memorial Stadium. And so, with good intentions, we sent an e-mail to Mr. Cyril Dofitas (see picture above), the head of the local organizing committee of PFF. They confirmed quickly about our supposed meeting, and so we went to the PFF headquarters at Pasig City.

We had this in mind before talking to Mr. Dofitas:

1.) If we can convince PFF to allow supporters (not just us) to bring our banners, tifos, drums AGAIN with no restricitons inside Rizal Memorial Stadium.

2.) That we need to clarify to them that our only intent inside that stadium is to support the national team and nothing else.

3.) And that we ultras support our national team with all of our heart and expect nothing in return.


We had a lengthy talk, BUT DOFITAS SAID NO.  It's apparrent that the problem when talking to bureaucrats is that they adhere to rigid, uncompromising rules, like the PFF Code of Conduct. He loves to use the word RULES AND REGULATIONS. We felt gutted seeing the shortsightedness of these people. And we ain't just suffering alone, other groups like the Kaholeros can't unfurl their giant flag last Peace Cup, and some fans can't bring their flags just because the flagpoles because they suspect that sole purpose of bringing your flagpole inside is that you will use it to hit someone. Cynicism rules the day.

They "sympathize" with you, but they say: RULES ARE RULES. What is the purpose of these cynical rules and regulations like the CoC if we're just supporting our national team?

Upon the conclusion of the fruitless meeting with Mr. Dofitas, he asked us if we can meet with Mr. Ed Gastanes, also one of the bigwigs of PFF. You know what's funny about this? Mr. Gastanes told us in a prior message days ago that we need to talk to Mr. Dofitas instead of him.

In short, pinagpapasa-pasahan  lang kami ng mga opisyal ng PFF.

Another thing, Gastanes was busy to have a talk with us, and so after this fruitless venture, we left the PFF Building. 

THINGS WE QUOTED FROM MR. DOFITAS (non-verbatim, with comments)


1.) "Kayo ba ang cheering squad sa Green Bleachers?"

It seems that some people, especially at the top of PFF, doesn't know the terrace scene here in the Philippines. We understood that they have so many things to do in their line of work, but being naive on some important aspect of Philippine football is a bit of a dead giveaway, that they know little about active support, hence their controversial decisions.

2.) "Na appreciate namin iyong ginagawa ninyo, but we need to follow regulations."

Why do we need to adhere to rules and regulations like those written at the PFF Code of Conduct, kung hindi ka naman gagawa ng masama? You are being labeled guilty before charges are filed at you. They jumped into conclusions that ultras is synonymous with hooliganism. It's a completely different idea, but the terms are being scrambled up by football officials here, as if it's just a given that rowdy people at RMS are there just to pick fights, nothing else. Cynicism again.

Pati sa pagsuporta, kailangan pa ata ng RED TAPE.

3.) "Ultras din ako dati, kaya naiintindihan ko kayo."

Ultras daw siya dati. He doesn't know what he's talking about.

4.) "Pwede namin papasukin iyang mga gamit niyo basta iinspeksyunin muna namin iyan at depende pa sa security kung papapasukin."

You can check our things before entering. Besides the security's bollocks, considering people are pissed that they can't retrieve their confiscated items before the match because the stewards just threw them at the side.

Supporting our national team is a RIGHT, not something to ask permission for. They are afraid that supporters might use banners against the PFF, but hey, PFF is playing safe, gusto manatiling mabango.

5.) "Hindi namin papakialamanan mga costumes ninyo."

I guess he compared us to those clowns who wore outrageous costumes during the World Cup. Jesus.

6.) "Huwag na kayo mag dala ng flag na me flagpoles, puwede nalang ba kayo magdala ng sticks na ginagamit dun sa mga lobo?

Susmaryosep.

7.) "Kelangan me specific sizes ang mga flags ninyo"

But they just allow advertisements everywhere in RMS. Kaching-kaching. Business is business.

WHAT'S THE FUTURE OF FOOTBALL HERE?

The local scene is full of indifference, for many people, they only see things on a television or on a computer. They don't see the issues happening on the terraces, or they care little at all. People doesn't give a damn about PFF's stupid Code of Conduct, aside from those few lads who watches the terraces LIVE. That's what PFF likes: too few people complaining, less pesky people to care about.

Watching football live is just secondary in spreading football here, it's more lucrative to have TV deals rather than to fill up those stadiums. Hence people are indifferent in terms of support.

Even if you have TV spectators watching football, without people watching from the terraces, it's just like a body without a soul. PFF doesn't care if you support actively or not. They're just playing safe, because they don't want stick their necks out. That's what bureaucrats are, they won't do anything unless if its too late.

Nako, madaming ibaban PFF nito.

Fans dream that they want to see atmosphere like those in Bundesliga, or the Premier league. But they don't have the balls or the guts to walk the talk. Some people walk the talk but the shortsightedness of people who run football here causes the local football scene to stagnate.

There's no purpose of putting new stadiums if PFF and their stupid rules discourage fans from supporting. They feel they have the chance of recreating what happened last 2011 after the Miracle of Hanoi. They took everything for granted and what they got is near-empty football stadiums after the hype of the Azkals wore down.

Old people who run the show here are too keen on keeping things as they were, they don't like new ideas or things , because (we guess) it's just a pain on the neck. They have this characteristic shortsightedness paired with cynicism that takes football to nowhere. Even if you have good stadiums and good infrastructure. but if you discriminate fans from actively supporting football just because your playing safe, you will get near-empty stadiums just like what you're getting now.

They're killing the culture before it blossoms, they're killing the terraces right before they feel they have the need of it. We tell you PFF: without fans, football is nothing.