Philippine Showbiz Today Vol11 No 10 | Page 23

Philippine Showbiz Today 23
May 22 - June 7 , 2016

Philippine Showbiz Today 23

Senator Pacquiao calls for unity

Outgoing Sarangani Congressman and soonto-be senator Manny Pacquiao called on all the candidates who ran for the different positions in the recent local and national elections to forget politics and instead unite and support the would be victors in the collective efforts towards change and progress of the country .
“ Our people have spoken by electing a new president , let us all unite and support him to attain the change that we have been long dreaming of towards improving our way of life ,” Pacquiao , owner of the hard-to-duplicate ten world titles in eight divisions of boxing , said .
“ Nananawagan ako sa lahat ng mga kandidatong naghangad ng iba ’ t-ibang posisyon nitong katatapos na halalan at sa buong sambayanang Pilipino na kalimutan na natin ang di pagkakaunawaan dala ng mainit na kampanya at magkaisa tayong suportahan ang ating bagong Pangulong si Rodrigo Durerte para sa pagbaba-
go ng ating bansa ,” the 37-year-old told Lyn Olavario of TV 5 in an interview .
“ Sigurado na naman ang bilang niya at magiging presidente na siya . Kaya tinatawagan ko ang lahat ng mga pulitiko at ang mga kababayan natin na kalimutan na ang pulitika at isipin ang kapakanan ng bansa at nating mga Pilipino ,” he said . “ For me , nothing can change kung hindi tayo magkakaisa .”
“ Tapos na ang pulitika . Lahat ng samaan ng loob ay kalimutan na . Tunay na sa nakaraang eleksyon , marami ang nagkasamaan ng loob . Huwag na sana tayong masyadong maapektuhan ng nangyari . Ang pagkakaibigan , iba sa pulitika ,” the General Santos Citybased ring legend urged .
“ Siya ( Duterte ) na ang pinili ng bayan . Let us honor that choice . The choice of the people is the choice of God ,” the father of five stressed .
“ Me , I ’ m happy at isa ako as napili ng ating kababayan na maging
senador . Pagkakaingatan ko at igagalang ang desisyong ito ng bayan . Pahahalagahan at susuklian ng malilinis at matapat na paglilingkod ,” Pacquiao said in a separate long distance telephone interview with this writer .
Pacquiao said that like when he was a member of Congress , he will be focusing , as a senator , on citizen-building through sports , education and providing job for the poor .
“ Gagawa tayo ng batas na makapagbibigay ng libreng edukasyon sa ating
mga kabataan from elementary to college ,” he vowed . “ Dito sa Mindanao , maraming pamilya ang hindi makapagpaaral ng anak dahil sa kahirapan . “
“ Walang pambili man lamang ng pagkain sa kawalan ng trabaho . Kailangan nating pagtuunan ng pansin itong mga pangunahing problemang ito . At inihahanda na ng staff ko ang solusyon tungkol dito ,” he assured .
“ Sports is where I came from so , pangunahing adbokasiya ko rin ito . Kailangan ang epektibong
Photo by Wendell Rupert Alinea
sports development program na magsisimula sa grassroots ,” he detailed . “ Bihira yung nangyari sa akin na hindi nanggaling sa grassroots program .”
“ Muli ’ y nagpapasalamat ako sa ating mga kababayan sa tiwalang ipinagkaloob nila sa akin at sa aking mga kapatid na nahalal din ,” he said referring to Bobby , a former boxer like him who was elected councilor in General Santos City , and youngest sibling Ruel , who took his place as Congressman of Sarangani .•

Spectator

By Al Mendoza
Of the 12 winning senators on May 9 , only three are not from Luzon .
Frank Drilon is from the Visayas ( No . 1 , Iloilo ), and Miguel Zubiri ( No . 6 , Bukidnon ) and Manny Pacquiao ( No . 7 , South Cotabato / Sarangani ) are from Mindanao .
The Luzonians are Joel Villanueva No . 2 , Tito Sotto No . 3 , Ping Lacson No . 4 , Dick Gordon No . 5 , Risa Hontiveros No . 8 , Kiko Pangilinan No . 9 , Win Gatchalian No . 10 , Ralph Recto No . 11 and Leila de Lima No . 12 .
Too bad that reelectionists Serge Osmena ( No . 14 , Cebu ) and TG Guingona ( No . 17 , Agusan ) did not make it . They are a big loss to the nation as both are known graftbusters and fiscalizers ; their integrity is beyond question . And , if only for the record , Guingona is my neighbor in my humble village in Q . C .
I ’ ve known Sotto long before Pacquiao rose to world boxing fame . To those who may have forgotten , Sotto was a former world bowling champion . Thus , we now have two world sporting icons in the Senate : Sotto and Pacquiao . Surely , that ’ d be a boon to our athletes ?
Like Zubiri , I also have ties that bind with Sotto . It begins and ends with

Simplicity is what defines Digong

us being members of the Maddogan Golf Club . I was president when Tito joined the club . See ?
Zubiri had arrived unannounced during the second one-man show of painter-cum-basketballcoach Dayong . “ I read it in the papers ,” Zubiri has said then .
Pacquiao and I have yet to meet in person . No worries . Our connection is through mutual friends . Like Manny Pinol , Demosthenes “ Bobby ” Rosales , Joe Ramos , Reli de Leon and , yes , when President Duterte was still Digong Duterte .
While at this , Drilon and De Lima are also katsokarans . Drilon , a friend since my Bulletin days as he was then Bulletin ’ s legal counsel , and De Lima were my fellow wedding sponsors when the daughter of my bosom buddies , Marvin & Pia Velayo , got married last year at the Manila Cathedral .
A couple of nights ago , poet-playwright Sol F . Juvida told me she saw Ken Angeles on TV talking about Duterte ’ s favorite viand at Yellow Fin Tuna Restaurant in Davao City .
“ Digong ’ s favorite then was munggo with pork ,” Sol quoted Ken , the restaurant owner who is one of Duterte ’ s dearest friends , as saying . “ But now , it is munggo with dilis .”
Simplicity , indeed , is what defines our new President .
I WISH DUTERTE AND PACQUIAO WELL
Duterte has become a combination of Nonito Donaire Jr . and Mark Magsayo . OK , include Manny Pacquiao .•