What’s Going On With the #SEAGamesFail, as Told by the Internet
Nov 25, 2019 • Kaira Guererro
Nov 25, 2019 • Kaira Guererro
It started with a shocking lackluster logo and mascot, continuing with photos of hand-written, poorly designed welcome banners for the delegates. Then the news of the astounding P50M cauldron came. As the hosting country for this year’s Southeast Asian Games, the Philippines is finding itself in a tough situation.
With a little less than a week to go, the first few delegates from various SEA countries flew in last Sunday and we had another fiasco on our hands: unfinished stadiums a mere days away from the competition, accommodation woes for foreign athletes, and the internet imploding with sheer secondhand embarrassment from it all.
I can already tell the #SEAGames2019 is going to be one huge fucking embarassment
— chie sierra 🌸 (@chieyori) November 24, 2019
In case you missed it, here is the scalding tea about this year’s 2019 #SEAGamesFail.
The #SEAGames2019 has gone from 5-peso printing jobs, to “Sinong maganda yung sulat? Eto marker oh”. 🙃
60B pesos stolen, tax money wasted on a failed event, while also being a diplomatic screw up. Congrats.#WeWinAsOne? The only one winning here is Cayetano’s pockets. pic.twitter.com/IdLKcAH720
— Jael #SOGIEEqualityNow 🏳️🌈 (@dyaelgonzales) November 24, 2019
4 pics 1 word: BASURA#SEAGames2019 pic.twitter.com/SKxsjFOlvL
— Jericho Rayel Timbol (@jerichorayel) November 24, 2019
hmmm i tried #SeaGames2019 pic.twitter.com/1ydjn6q65m
— josh (@Joshgrn_) November 22, 2019
It’s probably safe to say that every Filipino artist was offended when the logo designs were released and the rest who wasn’t, probably got offended when the welcome banners were released. Local computer shops could do better, heck even random guy from Twitter could do it better.
The budget for this event should NOT be compared with previous hosts. The quality of services alone are obviously low.
Cayetano and Go continue to defend this because it is CORRUPTION, all for their own gain. Yet they don’t even care when budget cuts in social services happen.
— Sean Thakur #OustDuterte (@seanthakur) November 24, 2019
Just like Philippine teleseryes, our government has the same recurring plot and theme: corrupt politicians in sheep’s clothing fooling naïve citizens, citizens voting for them, and then getting heartbroken over the stupid things they do. When will Filipinos learn?
*Doubt pic.twitter.com/a5ii4WhlMo
— Malacañang Events and Catering Services (@MalacananEvents) November 20, 2019
– Substandard and materials
– Hindi pa maayos ang electric wiring system.
– Hindi pa kumpleto ang volunteer ushers. Kapag pumalpak ang volunteers… keri lang, hindi naman sila employed.
– okay lang may kaldero naman tayo lolololol— AltABSCBN (@AltABSCBN) November 18, 2019
If there are people we should be thanking for this year’s SEA Games, it’s the volunteers and the workers. They’re working their ass off trying to build an arena that should’ve been done months ago, they’re volunteering for work that should’ve been paid. Instead, all they will get is essentially bragging rights on their resume. Uhm, what’s there to brag about?
Calling the resignation of the corrupt #SEAGames2019 head Alan Peter Cayetano & the Philippine Sports Officials! Massive corruption, lack of accomodation & transportation to foreign athletes. You are destroying the reputation of the Filipinos. What a mess!!! #CayetanoResign pic.twitter.com/nvfCbwqfhB
— Larry Domingo (@LarryDomingo15) November 24, 2019
Have so far seen socmed posts on/from Thailand, Myanmar, and Timor Leste athletes with bad experiences since arriving in the Philippines. Comments are filled with their citizens angry at the poor treatment of their teams.
This is nothing less than an international embarrassment.
— Diego Magallona (@diegomags) November 23, 2019
Ever experienced relatives suddenly popping up in your house without informing you? You had to rush to accommodate them. This scenario is even worse: foreign athletes and delegates arriving and expecting a warm welcome and the promised comfortable hotel rooms only to be told that they have to sleep at the airport and hotel lobby because nothing is prepared. This issue even came across as a cheating scam! To be fair, they aren’t the only athletes having a hard time, even our OWN athletes weren’t treated properly.
Polo shirt: P5,150
Round neck shirt: P2,480
Track jacket: P6,310
Track pants: P7,400
Shorts: P5,100
Socks: P2,700
Backpack: P3,190
Running shoes: P3,950
Cap: P2,400 https://t.co/SQRWW68Bx6— Barnaby Lo (@barnabychuck) November 23, 2019
Seriously?
Sana for the ASEAN delegates or planning, our government had just tapped all concert promoters to do the job 😢 I’m sure @PULPLiveWorld @mmilive @ovationprod @WilbrosLive would have loved to be part of it &would have done a good job taking care of the athletes 😓😔 #SEAGames2019
— ☺️ HAPPEE (@happeehour) November 24, 2019
We never thought we’d say this but K-Pop concerts have been handled better. Doesn’t matter anyway, there probably won’t even be a next time.
Excuse me, we aren’t complaining about #SEAGames2019 just bec. we are nega. It’s because 6 Billion pesos was spent on this. If we decided a small-scale, cheap event was more appropriate, OK lang e. But if it’s this bad with that budget it’s incompetence and/or corruption.
— Kip Oebanda (@kipoebanda) November 24, 2019
We’re an opinionated lot so it’s no surprise to find Filipinos torn over the matter on social media. DDS are shaking, and everybody is pointing a finger towards one person – Cayetano. At the end of the day is it really ungrateful Filipinos hurling mud at their country’s reputation for the rest of the world to see? We beg to differ. It’s not that we’re deliberately making our country a laughingstock and an example on bad PR in future textbooks, it’s just that we were made painfully aware of the corruption in this country and we want change.
The Duterte administration will always be challenged and ridiculed one way or another just like the previous administrations before it. The only option now is to take it as constructive criticism and act accordingly.
Southeast Asia,
We are sorry for what the Philippine government is doing to your athletes. If it were up to us, we’d do more for them. After all, they are heroes representing your country. Please know the Filipino people respect you and your delegates.#SEAGames2019
— Juan Bisaya (@unlucky911) November 23, 2019
We are not against our athletes. We are supporting them all the way. We are not against the Southeast Asian Games. We are against greed and corruption, and the incompetence of our government officials. #SEAGames2019
— The Professional Heckler (@hecklerforever8) November 24, 2019
Our athletes deserve better, foreign athletes deserve better, the Southeast Asian Games deserve better, heck even the Philippines deserve better! We’re chest deep in this muck no matter how much we fight to get out of it. The only solution that probably remains is to stay sharp and vigilant, expose those who need to be exposed, and when the time for changing administration comes (which is in 3 years), NEVER FORGET.
This entire chaos is just mortifying. Better watch the AMAs instead.
What do you think of this #SEAGamesFail fiasco? Share your thoughts with us below!
Input your search keywords and press Enter.
2 comments