VISA PROBLEMS MAY KO JACA-MARQUEZ SHOWDOWN
By Salven L. Lagumbay
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 18 Oct 2006
Securing an American visa proved to be tougher than going toe-to-toe with one of the world's most elite fighters as Filipino Jimrex Jaca realized yesterday following his third visit at the US Embassy in Manila.
As of yesterday afternoon, Jaca (real name Jemuel Divino) was still unable to secure his visa, stating that the US consul had told him that his name did not match what was in the computer files.
"I was not given my visa. I was even about to cry in front of the consul. They asked me to come again. I'm losing hope," said Jaca in an interview yesterday.
Apparently, there seems to be a problem with his ring name Jimrex Jaca and his real name, thus causing the delay which may cost him some $50,000 in income which is what he will get if he gets to tangle with WBO interim featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez this Sunday at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas.
Rex 'Wakee' Salud, in a separate interview yesterday, also cited that part of the problem was his team's failure to determine the expiry date of Jaca's passport, which falls within the six-month maximum allowed by the US embassy.
Salud also cited the delay in the arrival of the invitation letter for his boxer's P1 visa as another factor that caused the delay.
Jaca had been in the US last January as he saw action underneath the Manny Pacquiao-Erik Morales showdown, and went back to the country way before his visa had expired.
Ironically, Jaca's trainer Robert Bubuli Jr, a first-time visitor to the United States, has already been issued his American visa last Monday.
The Sibulan, Negros-raised Jaca, however, remained confident when interviewed by this writer yesterday, saying that he will visit the US Embassy one more time today to push his luck and get a visa. He said his hope is running low though, as time is running out taking into account the medical requirements that he has to undergo in the US before taking on the iconic Marquez.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Salven L. Lagumbay.
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