Wednesday, July 02, 2008 Wenceslao: Pacquiao’s triumph, President’s visit By Bong O. Wenceslao Candid Thoughts
FOR a day or two, a Manny Pacquiao fight succeeded in easing out of the consciousness of Filipinos much of the “negative” reports that dominated the headlines. That is, of course, the function of sports and circuses: to provide an escape from the drabness of everyday existence. Besides, in the gloom, people always look for some light.
I was among those who thought Pacquiao could grab the WBC lightweight crown from Chicagoan David Diaz, but not in a spectacular manner like what happened in their Las Vegas bout last Sunday (June 29). What was worth noting was that, for a change, a Filipino was the one that put on a boxing clinic and not the one at the receiving end of it.
The fight reminded me of Mayweather-Baldomir, but with a twist. On Nov. 4, 2006, then pound-for-pound king (now “retired”) Floyd Mayweather Jr. challenged then WBC welterweight champ Carlos Baldomir. Mayweather toyed with the heavier and slow-footed Argentine. But unlike Pacquiao, Pretty Boy failed to knock out Baldomir.
With his performance and the fact that he has become the first Asian to hold four (official) titles in four weight divisions, Pacquiao has gone to a place where no other Filipino boxer has gone before. With the heavyweight division in shambles and Oscar de la Hoya about to retire, international boxing has a new king-in-waiting, and he is a Pinoy.
There is sense, therefore, to all the flag-waving and boisterous celebrations seen in every country where Filipinos have drifted. The fight was held in one of the worst times for the country: after typhoon Frank struck and mv Princess of the Stars sank. The sifting through Frank’s devastation and search for the missing took a welcome respite.
But the Pacquiao spell has waned and reality is staring at us in the face again. The transport strike in Cebu last Monday reminded us of the continuing rise of the prices of petroleum products. Sulpicio Lines suing Pag-asa for the Princess sinking brought back images of unidentified corpses at the Cosmopolitan Funeral Parlor along Junquera St.
When typhoon Frank struck mainly the Visayas and Princess capsized in the seas off Sibuyan Island, President Arroyo was in the United States for a scheduled working visit. She is in Cebu today and hopefully can console with the relatives of the victims at the Cebu City Sports Center where the search for the missing is being systematized.
Pacquiao, for his part, will return to the country this week and he has promised to give assistance to the typhoon victims out of the millions of pesos he has accumulated in his fights. I don’t know his itinerary (better ask his Cebu-based adviser Wakee Salud that), but Pacquiao’s presence especially at the sports center would be a morale booster.
It’s not that the problems we are encountering the past couple of weeks will vanish with the visits of personalities like the President and Pacquiao. But success in international endeavors should not be separated from domestic concerns.
Pacquiao’s triumph, for example, can only be made meaningful if it is tied to domestic concerns, or it would be nothing but an empty boast.
(khanwens@yahoo.com/ my blog: cebuano.wordpress.com)
