EFFECTIVE TODAY, SEPTEMBER 28, the San Beda University (SBU) Band will no longer perform at the forthcoming games of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 100, The Bedan has learned.
Last September 10, eyebrows were raised as the SBU Band was noticeably absent during the San Beda Red Lions’ game against the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS) Blazers, leaving the Bedan community with speculation as to why they weren’t there in the first place.
Allen Rogel, the Band’s team captain, has finally disclosed to The Bedan how, starting today, September 28, the band shall only be limited to performing in “internal events,” while being prohibited to perform in the NCAA allegedly due to a supposed “review on the benefits acquired by the band.”
Moreover, the team captain also revealed how, “two days prior to the opening of NCAA Season 100,” he was “unfairly” suspended allegedly without any official documentation or reason, “both in-house and in the NCAA games.”
In addition to that, although there is a “long-standing tradition” for the band to perform with its current alumni, Rogel alleged that there were also directives to “prohibit San Beda alumni from playing with the squad.”
Pressed for his response on the ongoing issue, Mr. Steve De Guzman, the current moderator of the SBU Band, declined to release a statement for now.
Showing their support for the band, Bedan students, professional and non-professional organizations from the Student Organizational Circle (SOC), as well as alumni, have rallied on social media to register their support with the hashtag #LetSBUBandPlay, urging the University’s administrators to reinstate the band to its rightful podium.
While the reasons for the band’s restriction and the alumni’s participation, along with Rogel’s suspension, have yet to be disclosed, the team captain, speaking on behalf of his band, assured the Bedan community of their “continued support before our athletes, but not as a band for now.”
The Bedan is in the process of reaching out to certain Athletics Office officials. This article will be updated with their response.
(with reports from Paris Isaac Falcone)