The mother of Rene Baterbonia pushed back against the public apology delivered by Ateneo de Manila University men’s basketball head coach Tab Baldwin, telling him that contrition does nothing to reverse the loss of her son.
Rovelyn Baterbonia laid out her response on Facebook on Saturday, a day after Baldwin spoke publicly for the first time about the deaths. What she wanted, she made clear, was a full accounting of events rather than expressions of regret.
“Hindi kaya ng apologies ang kamatayan ng aking anak para sa kaalaman mo. Ang aking gusto ay ipahayag ninyo kung ano talaga ang nangyari,” she wrote.
She questioned the framing of the incident as accidental and pointed to a breakdown in communication from the program. “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.”
Among her grievances was how she learned the news. “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, noting that word of her son’s death reached social media before the family received any confirmation directly.
Baldwin’s remarks the previous day marked the first time he had addressed the tragedy in public. In the video, he framed his apology in stark terms. “I’m sorry. To the depth of my being, I’m sorry,” he said.
The Blue Eagles coach drew a line between the grief of the program and that of the bereaved families, placing the latter as the heavier burden. “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.”
The same incident also took the life of Divine Adili, the second player whose family Baldwin referenced in his statement.
