Once an ally of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, boxing legend Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao has turned against the country’s strongman leader, setting up a bout with the most powerful man in the archipelago as the country prepares for elections in 2022.
Though Pacquiao and Duterte are in the same ruling party, the boxer—once among Duterte’s staunchest allies—had recently said the current government was more corrupt than its predecessor. Incensed, Duterte challenged the southpaw to “name names” of corrupt officials in his government, barring which he threatened to “expose” the boxer on a daily basis.
“I'm not saying there is no corruption, so expose it," Duterte said in a televised late night national address. "If you don't do that, I will expose you daily as a liar...I know you from way back." The President, known for swearing at his enemies, also used an expletive against the boxer.
Pacquiao, in turn, said he accepted Duterte’s challenge, setting the stage for a bout between the Philippines most famous athlete and its deadliest politician. "I had mistakes in life that I corrected but I can hold on to two things. I am not corrupt and a liar," Pacquiao said on Tuesday.
Pacquiao’s career in politics, over ten years in the making, has awaited his turning of age to be eligible to run for president—the Philippines requires candidates to be at least 40 by the day of the election. Pacquiao, now 42, missed out on the opportunity in the 2016 election—but is now considered one of the frontunners for the 2022 race. Pacquiao had said he is open to running for President, “If there is a space for me".
While Duterte is barred by the Filipino constitution from contesting again, his daughter Sara, who is also the mayor of Davao City, may be considering a run. Both Duterte and Pacquiao are members of the ruling PDP-Laban party—of which Pacquiao is President while Duterte serves as chairperson.
The party recently adopted a resolution asking Duterte to run for vice president and choose his own candidate for president. With the ball in Duterte's court, the open war of words between the boxer and the President may end up ending Pacquiao’s carefully-built bid for power.
Pacquiao now faces two bouts—a boxing match, against the undefeated Errol Spencer Jr. in Las Vegas on August 21, and a political one in the Philippines against the man whose regime is believed responsible for thousands of extrajudicial killings since Duterte took power.
Should Duterte shut the door to Pacquiao’s run for presidency, it paves the way for him to run as an independent—not a long shot given his immense popularity in the nation of 110 million. An independent run may end up splitting the PDP-Laban’s vote base, giving rivals an edge. Such an outcome is reportedly not favoured even within the party, with PDP-Laban executive director Ron Munsayac saying members of the party were still confident in Pacquiao’s leadership, the Inquirer reported.
“We don’t see any the possibility of his being removed from his post because we are confident of his leadership, and that view also comes from our grassroots members,” he was quoted as saying.
In an April poll, Sara Duterte remained the top candidate—though she has insisted she had no interest in running.
The survey by the independent Pulse Asia showed 27 per cent of 2,400 respondents would vote for Davao city mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio above 13 other suggested candidates.
Another dynast, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr—son of the country’s late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos—was the second-most popular candidate.
The Liberal Party—the second largest after the PDP-Lagan—lost one of its best-known leaders, former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to renal failure last week. Aquino had been president of the Philippines between 2010-2016. Vice President Leni Gerona Robredo has yet to confirm a presidential bid but with Aquino’s passing, she is being touted as a possible candidate.
Another progressive leader, academic Walden Bello, has launched a signature campaign to garner up to 300,000 signatures to determine whether he will run for president.
Against these opponents, Pacquiao faces the challenge of being seen as a longtime ally of Duterte’s policies—including supporting his controversial war on drugs that led to thousands of extra-judicial killings. However, a “tough on crime” stance has benefited Duterte, and a similar approach appears due from Pacquiao, who has called for the death penalty to be re-instated in the country.
While Duterte has been known to engage in verbal fisticuffs with his opponents, he is not averse to making peace--in 2018 he apologised for using an expletive against former US President Barack Obama. If pre-empting a split vote can ensuree another term for the LDP-Lagan, he may well bury the hatchet with the eight-division world champion.
