Has Manny Pacquiao been ?impeached??
By Recah Trinidad
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 02 Apr 2012
HOW much has the controversy over his incomplete tax records affected Manny Pacquiao, both here and abroad?
?Floyd Mayweather has put an end to Pacquiao?s stranglehold in the Ring magazine?s Best Fighter Poll,? Nick Giongco of the Manila Bulletin reported yesterday. ?In the Ring?s May 2012 issue, Mayweather emerged as top vote getter from majority of 10 fight scribes polled by editor-in-chief Michael Rosentual.?
Mayweather got 5.5 first-place votes, Pacquiao received 3.5.
**
Did the tax controversy, which was also played out in foreign media, affect Pacquiao?s stature?
There was no reply from Nick Giongco at press time.
Of course, it will affect Pacquiao, advised the scholarly Tony Bulatao, self-taught sociologist and favorite nephew of the unsinkable Fortunato Abat, retired commanding army general.
Not only that, Bulatao added, it was inevitable that Pacquiao would be compared to Chief Justice Renato Corona.
**
How and why? Do you think his demotion in the Ring Best Fighter Poll was akin to an impeachment?
?Just like Corona, Pacquiao readily cried harassment,? Bulatao explained.
But their cases are completely different.
?Yes, the BIR only wanted to compare notes with him on his tax records,? the sidestreet scholar explained, ?but it was Pacquiao himself who blew it up.?
How?
?He challenged the BIR to a court slug-out.?
**
Well, Pacquiao has every reason to react belligerently.
?Of course, the ex-change between him and the BIR chief was nothing short of damaging.?
What do you mean?
?It has divided people, those who think he should be given due respect and those who swear there should be no exception when it comes to public accountability.?
Compared to Corona, do you mean think that, in case of a public survey, Pacquiao?s trust rating would also drop?
?Maybe not, but who can tell??
**
Anyway, Nick Giongco also noted that Pacquiao had topped the same poll for three straight years (2008 until 2010) but gave way to Mayweather in 2011. The survey was participated in by a select group composed of Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, Ron Borges of Boston Herald, Gunnar Meinhardt of DieWelt (Germany), Gary Poole (Time International) Norm Rosenheim (Ring contributre), Keith Idec (The Record and Herald New of New Jersey), Harry Pratt of Daily Star (United Kingdowm), Rick Reeno of boxingscene, Don Rafael ESPN.Com, and Giongco himself (Manila Bulletin).
Here at home, several colleagues in Congress readily gathered around Pacquiao.
Sen. Joker Arroyo, who said Pacquiao did not sign the impeachment complaint against Justice Corona, decried the ?timing and manner? of the BIR investigation on the boxing superhero.
Explained Malacanang: ?There are certain documents that the (BIR Mindanao) regional office is asking for, but the lawyers and staff of Congressman Pacquiao has not complied with. There?s nothing more to it.?
**
The odd thing is that the controversy heightened almost immediately after Pacquiao?s solemn claim that he had talked to God in a dream.
After that dream dialogue with his Creator, Pacquiao also said he was looking forward to retiring ahead of schedule.
It was not easy to explain. But it could be that the New Manny Pacquiao, as the national treasure had described himself, suffered another off-night--just like what happened in his last bout with Juan Manuel Marquez--in that clash with the BIR.
Maybe it was all the fault of his lawyers, says the battle-scarred police colonel Pat Pinol in Kidapawan.
?Pacquiao definitely has good intentions, but he?s only human.?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Recah Trinidad.
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