SULAIMAN URGES PACQUIAO TO LISTEN
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 16 May 2007
WBC president Jose Sulaiman has urged Filipino ring idol Manny Pacquiao to listen to wise counsel and said that at the right time he will be also be a "political champion." Sulaiman was speaking to well-known boxing writer James Blears of the widely read boxingscene.com.
Blears relayed Sulaiman's comments to Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today after it became clear Pacquiao was taking a bad beating at the polls from incumbent congresswoman Darlene Antonino Custodio in the battle for the lone congressional seat of South Cotabato.
Sulaiman believes, like a vast majority of Filipino supporters, that Pacquiao "made a mistake at this particular time and should have run for politics after retirement from boxing."
The WBC president who had agreed to give Pacquiao some time off for his political campaign and not force him into a mandatory title fight against super featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez said "God gave him this boxing ability that has made him a super hero and a multi-millionaire. So he should stay where he is king until he steps down. Then he should use his popularity to go into politics, when he can totally devote his time to that."
Sulaiman felt that the voters would have wondered what Pacquiao was going to do – boxing or politics.
At the same time Don Jose referred to Pacquiao’s tendency to change his mind often. Sulaiman said "Manny has a very changing mind. He’s A today and B tomorrow, white today and black tomorrow" adding "that is very difficult." This was evident when he signed two seperate promotional contracts - first with Golden Boy Promotions in mid-September and then two months later with Bob Arum of Top Rank resulting in a legal battle between the two promotional outfits.
Earlier, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum who made a quick visit to General Santos City to give Pacquiao "moral support" told Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today in an overseas telephone conversation that he was "very, very disappointed" over his prized fighter’s defeat and said it was a pity because he believed Pacquiao could handle being a congressman and a boxer at the same time and would have done much for his constituents.
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