The Bacolod Yuhum Foundation (BYF) on Monday explained why several PBA All-Star Games ticket holders were not allowed into the University of Saint La Salle (USLS) Coliseum in Bacolod City on Sunday night, March 14.
The “ticket holders” posted photos and complained on social media about their not being allowed into the venue.
“The closure of the gates during the PBA All-Star Games at the USLS Coliseum was a joint decision of the Bacolod Yuhum Foundation and the USLS Coliseum management as stipulated in our contract,” the BYF said in its statement.
Closure of the gates happened around 6:30 p.m., about the time the official game started, it said.
In all their posters and ticket selling booth, there were reminders that the gates would open by 1 p.m. and close when the game starts, BYF said.
This reminder was also posted in their social media page since March 17 up to the day before the PBA games started, it added.
“Which means, those who were denied entry came in very late. Both USLS and Bacolod Yuhum can attest, through the CCTV cameras in the Coliseum, that when the decision to close the gates happened, just about when the game started, nobody was outside the gates anymore,” BYF said.
“It is also not true that ticket holders were denied entry because the Coliseum was already in full capacity because Bacolod Yuhum Foundation had 500 tickets left that were not disposed of before the game started,” it added.
“If the buying patrons were inconvenienced, we apologize and will exert efforts in future events to avoid such inconvenience to happen,” the BYF said.*