House Speaker and Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC) Chairman Alan Peter Cayetano has appealed for understanding and promised continuous improvements in the country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games.
Cayetano was apologetic to participating countries Timor Leste, Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar after their respective football teams encountered problems in their hotel accommodation and transportation upon arrival at the airport.
“We sincerely apologized to what happened. We are apologizing for the inconveniences or if I may call it inefficiencies [sic],” said Cayetano told the media at the World Trade Center in Pasay City.
He was accompanied by Philippine Olympic Committee President Bambol Tolentino.
Cayetano and PHISGOC officials together resolved all the issues with Tolentino when they visited on Sunday all foreign delegates at the Century Park Hotel, and provided them with all their needs.
Cayetano also reiterated that PHISGOC will give Southeast Asian nations the best SEA Games experience, but asked for understanding for the lapses that rose a week before the opening ceremony on Nov. 30 at Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
“We are ready to provide a world-class hosting. But even in a world-class hosting, we are still human and we’re not perfect,” added Cayetano.
“We always hope that everything will be fine, but we also expect that there’s a mini-crisis that we need to resolve.”
With a week left before the formal opening ceremony of the 30th Southeast Asian Games on November 30, the teams of Myanmar, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Cambodia arrived early to compete in men’s football that opened Monday at the Rizal Memorial Football field.
