President Aquino signs RA 10676 as residency rule is nixed

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine President Benigno Aquino III has signed into law Republic Act No. 10676, which nixes residency rules for high school athletes electing to transfer to different colleges.

Senator Pia Cayetano, the person who spearheaded the bill, said in a tweet on Friday, August 28, that “With the enactment of RA 10676, there should be no more #residency issues of #StudentAthletes.”

With the enactment of RA 10676, there should be no more #residency issues of #StudentAthletes. pic.twitter.com/e4SRswOgmv

— pia cayetano (@piacayetano) August 28, 2015

Under section 4 of Cayetano’s bill, which is now a law, it states that, “Residency requirement shall not be imposed on a student-athlete who is a high school graduate enrolling in a college or university.”

The bill – which affects collegiate leagues PRISAA, UAAP, NCAA, WNCAA, SCUAA, CESAFI, NCRAA, ALCUAA and NAASCU – also indicates that student-athletes transferring from one college or university to another will have to go through a maximum of one-year residency.

Although Cayetano’s bill is now turned to law, she is still in the process of trying to fight for the eligibility of Ateneo student-athlete Hubert Cani.

Cani, a former NU high school player, transferred to Ateneo in 2014 for college and has already served a year of residency. The UAAP, board, however, recently voted that Cani will still have to complete the original two-year residency rule imposed by the league since RA 10676 cannot be applied retroactively, they say.

Ateneo has appealed for a reconsideration of the decision and a board meeting is scheduled on Tuesday, September 1, according to Inquirer. 

Cani recently told Rappler that he is not mad at the UAAP, but hopes the issue of his eligibility doesn’t become personal.

Cani’s father Angelito, meanwhile, has already reached out to the UAAP board, according to the Inquirer report.

“I know that the board is saying that the rule cannot be applied on Hubert, but look it’s now a law and we are supposed to follow the law,” he said.

The UAAP season opens on September 5, Saturday, with Ateneo scheduled to open their campaign on Sunday, September 6, against FEU. – Rappler.com