After conquering the world of boxing, eight-division world champion and Senator Manny Pacquiao is setting his sight on his biggest stage yet – the Philippine presidency. However, fellow PDP-Laban official and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte might be his opponent this time.
Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) recently made waves for their internal conflict. Tensions spiked when PDP-Laban Acting President, Senator Pacquiao, urged members to ignore the call of Vice Chairman Alfonso Cusi for a national assembly last May 31. Over 100 members attended the council meeting despite Pacquiao’s intervention.
The meeting’s agenda included the preparation for their standard-bearer in the 2022 elections in which the boxer-turned-politician is also rumored to be gunning for. However, Duterte’s allies seemed determined to knock him out of the presidential ring in favor of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.
Ignoring Pacman’s ambitions, the ruling party’s officials are clamoring for a Duterte-Duterte tandem instead. They adopted a resolution seeking to convince the President to run as vice president. They also gave Duterte free reign for his presidential candidate even though they want the daughter to succeed him.
Last February, the younger Duterte also topped the presidential survey for the coming elections, OCTA Research said. Meanwhile, Pacquiao only placed third.
Unlike Pacquiao, however, Inday Sara does not belong to PDP-Laban. She chairs the regional political party Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP). The Mayor also declined invitations to join her father’s national political party. Former PDP-Laban President and Senator Koko Pimentel even praised her for turning down the offer.
Before this, Pacquiao was Duterte’s top choice for the presidency. During the boxer-senator’s birthday bash last December 2017, the older Duterte urged him to run for president. The May 2022 elections will also be the first time where Pacquiao is old enough to run as the country’s leader.
However, as the day is fast approaching, he finds himself hanging.
Duterte does not consider him as his sole successor anymore. Instead, Pacquiao finds himself in a tight fight against Mayor Sara Duterte, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, Senator Bong Go and Bongbong Marcos for the seat of presidency. And the stress of losing Duterte’s favor is getting to him.
There seems to be a falling out between the two despite their party’s assurance. Pacquiao on May 4 criticized President Duterte’s handling of the West Philippine Sea (WPS) issue. He said he found Duterte’s actions lacking and discouraging.
The boxer-senator also blasted fellow PDP-Laban official and Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi in a privileged speech. According to Pacquiao, they should focus on working instead of politics. He also called Cusi incompetent for the Luzon blackouts.
Cusi was noticeably absent when the Department of Energy (DOE) held a press conference to address the energy crisis in Luzon. He was busy presiding over PDP-Laban’s national council meeting where he also bypassed Pacquiao’s authority as the acting president.
Despite this, PDP-Laban Executive Director Ron Munsayac assured that Pacquiao will remain in the party until the end. He also said the boxer-senator is supportive of the party resolution urging Duterte to run as vice president.
The PDP-Laban is set to meet again on July 16 and 17 to finalize their nominations for presidential standard-bearer, vice president, senatorial and local bets for the May 2022 elections but, until then, Pacquiao will be on his tiptoes.
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