ABC: Does it spell Pacquiao's Defeat?

He cannot be a boxer forever, yet he can be a lasting champion



Manny Pacquiao has made his country, and Filipinos around the world, proud yet again with his impressive November 13,2010 victory at Cowboy Stadium in Dallas. Some 41,000 boxing fans showed up in person on fight night. Over a million tv sets signed in to HBO and paid the premium for the privilege of viewing the spectacular display on tv around the US and throughout the world.

And the paying public got its money’s worth. Pacquiao put on a show, devastating the bigger, taller, heavier Antonio Margarito in the process and ended the evening with yet another title, his record eighth.

. I left the sports bar where I watched the fight and headed for home, eager to put my recollections of the fight into written form.

After firing up my laptop and composing my memories of the evening, I delved into my files and revisited a March 10 article on my blog wherein I advised Manny Pacquiao to desist from his plan to become a politician. He did not take my advice and I really doubt if what I wrote ever got to him. But what made me revisit the article was a comment sent by one of my readers, a friend whose opinion I always respected because of the candor with which he expressed them, very simply and to the point.

He said that I should not be too impressed with the reportage on Manny Pacquiao in the Philippines because his handlers and p.r. staff have adroitly succeeded in keeping all the “real news” out of the headlines.
Manny, he intimated, had reportedly succumbed to what he calls the “ABC”. This stood for, he explained, “alak, babae and casino”. He added that the rumor mill in Manila had it that the Filipino icon had amassed a large gambling debt and had accepted to fight Clottey mostly for the money so he could pay it off. This was disturbing news to me, yet I could not dismiss it completely because of the source. He did not want me to be sucked into the “Pacquiao is the greatest” p.r. machine.

And I, at the same time, started recalling how, in the early to mid ‘70’s in Hawaii, a string of very promising Filipino boxers had in no time succumbed to the lure of gaiety that characterized life on Waikiki beach. The pattern was that these boxers usually won their first few fights in spectacular fashion and became instant attractions. They became toasts of the Filipino community and spent their nights at fun clubs where “alak” was plentiful and the line of “babaes” seemed never ending.

One of these was a Cebuano boxer by the name of Rene Barrientos, a one time lightweight champion in the Philippines and who had a bright future in Hawaii and the USA. I have no direct knowledge of his night life activities as I left Hawaii not long after he arrived. But I kept in touch with activities in the islands where I had opened a Philippine News branch; one day I found out that Rene ended up joining a contingent of boxers whose dreams of championships, fame and riches had gone all up in smoke. Some went back home defeated and distraught, while others took jobs as bouncers in the night clubs that not too long ago treated them like celebrities.

I had not seen nor heard of any such debauchery associated with Manny in the US, but then again I have no access to him nor do I circulate anywhere near his sphere. I read once that his coach, Freddie Roach, had complained openly once about his boxer’s large entourage and how they negatively affected his conditioning. I’ve also heard that Manny was seen in several nightclubs both in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Then again he’s earned his money and his high standing the hard way. He literally fought for it and laid his life on the line in doing so. His opponents have either been champions or highly rated contenders in the various weight classes. Certainly no Palookas. So, why shouldn’t he indulge in the pleasures available to winners and power dudes like him and the many star athletes that we usually read about?

Well, perhaps it is because he stands out as a beacon of hope for the millions of young people in the Philippines who have been inspired by his story. The utter poverty of his youth did not deter him from aspiring to greatness. Blessed with unique physical attributes that he has used well, he worked very hard to attain his goals. He was not an overnight sensation. He achieved his standing literally absorbing one heavy and painful blow after another. And once he obtained enough wealth he went back to school and tackled the academics that were beyond his reach as a youngster because of his poverty. An excellent example worthy of emulation, indeed.

I hope he remembers, and keeps in mind, that with the accolades bestowed on him, and the high regard with which he is held, comes a responsibility. Whether he likes it or not he has to understand and realize that in a country plunged into the darkness of poverty, corruption, lawlessness and, for many, despair, he is one of the very few vanguards who can carry the torch that lights the way to a nation’s salvation. It is my sincere hope that as he moves forward to even more victories, that he brings with him the images, memories and interests of the impoverished people of his youth. And that he acts with a robust resolve to their upliftment, and not be the unwitting tool to be used and exploited by the current power elements with whom he hobnobs in the chambers of the Philippine congress and the halls and corridors of power where they constantly lurch, salivating at every opportunity for even more illicit riches.

He cannot be a boxer forever. Yet Manny Pacquiao has the rare opportunity to become his country’s most outstanding, and lasting, champion in ways far more important and significant than his accomplishments in the ring. Some people are bestowed with talent, opportunity and a vastly favorable moment in history. What they do with this rare confluence will determine whether they accomplish great things or, like many, simply rue and commiserate their lost and wasted opportunities. It is hoped that Manny Pacquiao sees, recognizes and embraces this moment, for we as a nation simply have no need, use nor tolerance for yet another waylaid and fallen hero.
ldq44@aol.com