Two senators, one from the administration and the other from the opposition, on Tuesday advised Filipino boxing icon Manny ?PacMan? Pacquiao not to pursue his reported return to politics in 2010.
Pacquiao ran for congressman and lost in the 2007 elections.
Sen. Juan Mi-guel Zubiri said Pacquiao is now one of the heroes in the country, but the celebrated boxer would gain a lot of enemies should he reenter politics.
?A political fight is very difficult. If [Pacquiao] endorses a group, the enemies of that group will be his enemies too,? said Zubiri, who ran and won under the administration ticket in the 2007 elections.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson also opposed Pacquiao?s plan to run again but for another reason?he believed that Pacquiao would only lose for being an administration candidate.
?He hasn?t learned his lesson. Had he run in 2007 under the opposition, he would have been a congressman now. If he plans to run in 2010, [he should not] do it under the administration [slate]. The endorsement of the administration is a kiss of death,? said Lacson, who won reelection in the 2007 elections under the opposition ticket.
Pacquiao on Monday took his oath as a member of Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino, or Kampi, the political party founded by President Gloria Arroyo. He said he would rejoin politics after he retires in 2009. The next national elections are scheduled for 2010.
Lacson said many senators and congressmen have high regard for Pacquiao because he was carrying the Philippine flag in all his fights. He himself, he added, is convinced about the patriotism of the famous boxer and in his ?burning desire? to serve and to help.
But, the senator noted, Pacquiao ?has already earned his place in Philippine history. He can help and serve without reentering politics.?
Zubiri also warned Pacquiao that all the ring master?s hard-earned money might go to waste once he returns to politics.
?When you look at Pacquiao, you will see a dollar sign. He has so much money. People will be going to him asking for projects until all his money is gone,? the senator said.
Pacquiao reportedly spent more than P100 million when he lost to Rep. Darlene Antonino in the 2007 race for congressman of General Santos City.
There are talks that he might run again in General Santos City, since Antonino would be ending her third and last term in 2010. There are also reports that he would run instead in Sarangani, where he had set up another residence.
Zubiri, who described Pacquiao as a friend, said Pacquiao must forget politics and concentrate instead on his coming fight with Oscar de la Hoya. Pacquiao is expected to make at least $15 million in that fight scheduled for December 6, 2008 in Las Vegas.
