Athlete injured in Cebu City Sports Center track oval seeks P880,000 in damages

The Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) rubberized track oval. /Photo: Glendale Rosal

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A karate-do athlete is asking the contractor of the track oval at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) to address the total damages she incurred after getting injured for using the “impaired oval.”

This matter was raised to the City Council during its regular session on Wednesday, in a privilege speech delivered by Councilor Rey Gealon.

Gealon told the Council that he received a demand letter from a law firm addressed to the track oval’s contractor, SBD Builders, dated Sept. 10, 2024.

The lawyer said in their letter that their client (athlete) was practicing at the CCSC on August 29, 2024, in preparation for her Karate tournaments in Dumaguete City, Danao City, and Indonesia.

At around 6:50 p.m. on the 29th, the athlete was doing karate drills, scrimmages, and sprints, together with other Cebu City participants in the sports tournament in Dumaguete City slated on Sept. 7 and 8.

Such exercises were already common to the athlete, but in her last sprint when she was about to reach the finish line, she stumbled at the track oval and broke her left little finger that was immediately subjected to medical interventions to reduce the pain, the lawyer said.

Fortunately, the athlete’s broken left finger was operated on August 30. The breakdown of the medical expenses and damages was included in the letter.

The cost of medicines was charged at P10,000; P20,000 for PhilHealth, and a P550,000 loss of income as a proprietor of a firm and being a karate-do instructor.

The “moral damages” were capped at P200,000 and P100,000 for “exemplary damages.”

Council discussion

The city government spent almost P54 million for the track oval’s renovation for the hosting of the 2024 Palarong Pambansa last July. 

However, days before the Palaro started, there were noticeable lumps in the oval, said Gealon.

Also during the event, sports officials confirmed that the CCSC track oval is short by 0.88 meters from its exact 400-meter measurement which resulted in the nullification of 11 track records. 

Cebu City Sports Commission Chairman John Pages confirmed that the discrepancy was mainly due to inaccuracies in lane painting.

READ:

CCSC track oval is 0.88 meters short – sports officials

CCSC’s rubberized track oval shows ‘visible signs’ of damage

With the athlete’s injury, Gealon cited Article 2189 of the Civil Code of the Philippines which stated that local governments would be “liable for damages for the death of, or injuries suffered by, any person by reason of the defective condition of roads, streets, bridges, public buildings, and other public works under their control or supervision.”

Gealon added that allowing the public to use the track oval without any safeguards despite its continuing state of disrepair was a reckless endangerment of the public.

With the incident, Gealon requested for the Office of the Mayor to immediately cause the repair of the track oval at the expense of the contractor, and, in the meantime, to close it from the public to prevent untoward accidents.

He also urged the CCSC management to close the damaged, dilapidated, deteriorated lanes, and for the contractor to attend to the complaint of the victim or “otherwise the Cebu City Government will be subsidiarily liable for it.”

Lastly, Gealon urged the CCSC management to conduct its own technical audit and to submit a detailed report and recommendation within five days from receipt of the council.

In charge of Palaro: Speak up

Councilor Joy Augustus Young, who was among the individuals who played a huge role in the track oval’s renovation in preparation of Cebu City’s hosting of Palarong Pambansa in 1994, said the city government is responsible for it and suggested the partial closure of the oval, focusing on the affected lanes.

“I’m just going to warn you with my 30 years of experience, kuyaw kaayo na gisi-gisi, daghan kaayo,” Young said.

(I’m just going to warn you with my 30 years of experience, it is very dangerous, there are many areas that are torn.)

Young also believed that both the contractor and the City Government were responsible for this incident, hence the City Government as the owner of CCSC should close the oval, especially those running around the oval with lumps.

“That’s very dangerous. Mapandol mo, magisi. Bisag wa siyay gisi, magisi kay ang rubber wa man mopilit sa asphalt. So, inig dagan nimo, maigo sa imong tiil [unya] masangit, malabay ka ana,” he further explained.

(That’s very dangerous. You get tripped, it will be torn. Even if there are no tear, the rubber will still eventually tear because the rubber did not stick to the asphalt. So when one would run, the lump will be hit by the feet and then you will get tripped and you will thrown or outbalanced by it.)

ALSO READ: CCSC rubberized track must be ripped off, replaced – insider

Young said it is about time for the people in charge of the Palaro and the oval to speak up as he observed that the issue had recently become silent.

Young also recapped what Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia mentioned in August that after the Pasigarbo sa Sugbo, the track oval would be repaired.

Garcia has already said that he had yet to finalize everything with the contractor so they could identify the timeframe of the oval’s closure for repair and completion.

Meanwhile, Councilor Franklyn Ong, for his part, believed the best source to speak up for the issue would be the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), referring to the Procurement Law or Republic Act 9184.

Ong said the BAC should answer how they qualified and awarded the contractor and what were the conditions during the bidding as it also entailed responsibility.

Councilor Francis Esparis proposed an executive session to be attended by BAC, contractor, CCSC management, and the City Treasurer’s Office. The executive session is scheduled for next week, Sept. 18.

At present, the track oval remains open to the public for those who wish to run there.