IS IT TIME FOR MANNY TO QUIT BOXING?
Manny Pacquiao’s loss to Jeff Horn, a result few saw coming, revives calls for him to choose: boxing or politics? Some in local boxing community say Pacquiao has nothing left to prove, should consider hanging up gloves
The Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) recorded a zero crime rate in the city from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. during the fight of Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao and Jeff Horn in the Battle of Brisbane in Australia yesterday.
CCPO Director Joel Doria said that the 11 police stations in Cebu City did not receive any calls in the four hours that the fight was being telecast.
“Lahat ng tao nakatutok sa laban, it added na walang krimen na nangyari sa mga oras na yun (Everyone focused on the fight. It turned out no crime happened during those hours),” Doria told SunStar Cebu.
Doria praised the match, saying that Pacquiao could still wield his boxing gloves in the ring against the younger Horn who won the bout.
“His performance was okay and the advantage was with Horn who was younger and had a much longer reach than Pacquiao. But we’ll be on our toes during the rematch,” Doria said.
Pacquiao reportedly received $10 million (approximately P504,656,600) for his share while Horn earned $500,000 (P25,232,830).
Supt. David Señor, the chief of operations of the CCPO, said that they deployed mobile patrols for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) meetings in the city and in places where public viewing of the fight took place.
“We intensified our police visibility by foot and patrol and alerted our police stations for their areas of responsibility with live showing for Pacman’s fight,” Señor said.
Señor said that he accepted the decision of the judges on the Pacquiao-Horn fight.
“Patas ra ang desisyon sa judges (The judges’ decision were fair),” he said.
Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 spokesperson, Senior Insp. Reslyn Abella, said that during the fight, there were no significant incidents that were reported.
She added that the arrival of delegates also went smoothly for the second day of the international summit, while security details are still in place in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu.
Reactions
The fight also earned mixed reactions from Cebu City officials.
For Mayor Tomas Osmeña, who is a known supporter of Pacquiao, the Filipino boxer lost “fair and square” to his Australian opponent.
He said Pacquiao has nothing left to prove as he is now old enough to fight professional boxers who grew up wishing they could be him.
Asked if the boxer should consider retiring from the sport and focus on his Senate work instead, Osmeña said he’s not in a posi- tion to comment on the matter.
“He is my only living idol and will continue to be forever. I’m not going to tell him what to do because I did absolutely nothing to make him what he has become,” he told SunStar Cebu in a text message.
For Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella, his loss does not diminish the boxer’s recognition as the “People’s Champ.”
Labella, however, said Pacquiao should now focus on his senate work and consider retiring to serve the people better.
“God has given him the opportunity to become a public servant and I think it’s time to focus on that. We’ll always be impressed with his feat as a boxer, but age will soon be taking a toll on him. We also need to see how great a public servant he will be outside the ring,” he said.
South district Rep. Rodrigo Abellanosa, for his part, said Pacquiao should focus on what he does best, which is boxing.
“I feel sorry for our countrymen who are heartbroken once again. To many, a Pacquiao victory gives a feeling similar to a personal success. Since Horn’s victory is seen by many as a fluke, a rematch is in order,” he said. / /