Philippines celebrate Pacquiao triumph

Filipinos rejoiced Sunday at boxing hero Manny Pacquiao’s victory in the United States after the country’s electricity provider pulled out all the stops to ensure people could watch the fight. Live coverage of the 12-round fight between Pacquiao and Ghana’s Joshua Clottey went without a hitch after Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes warned: “If people don’t get to watch Manny Pacquiao, it’s big trouble. That is a national catastrophe.”

In the weeks ahead, Manila and the southern Philippines had suffered daily power outages.

As in previous Pacquiao fights, the streets were empty as millions of fans were glued to television sets and radios. Police reported a “zero crime rate” — a phenomenon seen during previous Pacquiao fights, when even hardened criminals and guerrillas followed the event.

Pacquiao easily defeated Clottey by a unanimous decision to retain his World Boxing Organization welterweight title at the Cowboys Stadium in Texas.

“I owe this to all my fellow Filipinos, most of all to my family,” he told DZBB radio afterwards. Pacquiao now faces a different sort of challenge, one that could prove even tougher: he is running for a seat in the Philippine Congress at May elections, seeking to represent a district on the southern island of Mindanao. Despite his popularity, Pacquiao lost his first Congressional bid in 2007 and again faces a firmly entrenched opponent.

President Gloria Arroyo joined in celebrations, saying: “The nation again rejoices with and congratulates the people’s champion, Manny Pacquiao, in forging another victory for the Philippines.”

“With unity and hard work, Manny has again triumphed for his country.”

Commenting on the absence of crime during the fight, police spokesman Superintendent Rommel Miranda said: ``This really shows that the whole nation was united.”

For many observers, the only remaining foe left for the champion is the unbeaten Floyd Mayweather who, like Pacquiao, has been tagged by some pundits as the “best pound-for-pound fighter in the world”.

MANILA, Monday, AFP