IT is not intentional but the Philippines is heading towards an early collision course with China aside from the controversial territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
The country has only China as its rival in the hosting of the Fiba World Cup in 2019. The Chinese may have the tallest talents in Asia, but 40 percent of the basketball-crazy Filipinos understand and know how to play the game.
Come next month in Japan, chairman Manny V. Pangilinan of the Philippine Basketball Federation and his "tokayo" Manny Pacquiao, coach of Kia in the Philippine Basketball Association, will campaign for the hosting.
The 52,000-sitting capacity Philippine Arena, the Smart Araneta Coliseum, Mall of Asia Arena, and a Cebu Coliseum are the four venues picked to showcase the best teams of Fiba.
While MVP and his group are not sure yet of government support for the hosting and Gilas Pilipinas has not yet come up with its official lineup, our countrymen are going gaga over the possibility of Fiba World Cup here in the Land of Pinoys.
Theirs maybe the land of Sleeping Giant (not anymore today with its flexed muscles all over the South China Sea), but Filipinos will not back out from the challenge against the Chinese for the hosting bid.
PNoy has said in his State of the Nation Address (Sona) of an armed forces modernization – more specifically augmenting the dilapidated air force jets. That will come later and we're not in a hurry since the US Fleet is on a standby mode.
After the Sona, perhaps the current administration can now look over the SBP request and see if it has still money left to help cover the expenses for the hosting.
It is sad but seemed natural for us to decide late rather than be prepared early – hosting and formation of the national team. Sometimes we think it is the most valid alibi when things go wrong.
We're hoping we're not going to make the same mistake again.