AS results of the congressional election in Sarangani started trickling in last Monday and showed Manny Pacquiao leading, promoter Bob Arum requested a local reporter to call Roy Chiongbian?s nephew and relay his offer: Concede by 9:30 p.m. and you will get two tickets to Pacquiao?s next fight.
In response, according to Nancy Gay of Fanhouse, who covered the election in Sarangani and uploaded her story to Philboxing.com, Chiongbian laughed but politely refused the offer.
At midnight, Gay said, a visit to Chiongbian?s house in Gen. Santos revealed Pacquiao?s opponent for the lone congressional seat in Sarangani was fast asleep.
Pacquiao, meanwhile, had started celebrating?for good reason.
Although the final tally still has to be completed at press time yesterday, Gay said Pacquiao had already amassed nearly 90,000 votes out of 125,000 registered voters, making it mathematically impossible for Chiongbian to score a come-from-behind win.
A television report also said that at midday yesterday, Pacquiao had garnered 79,346 votes to Chiongbian?s 39,412, with only 17 percent of the election returns still to be tabulated.
Although Chiongbian has yet to concede, the title of congressman was in the bag for Pacquiao, whose victory could be considered one of the biggest upset in local polls. He is set to take his place in the 15th Philippine Congress that convenes in July.
Pacquiao, 31, a seven-time world champion, became the first professional boxer to hold national public office while still active in the ring.
“This is the biggest achievement of Manny?s life. More than any boxing match,” Gay quoted Pacquiao?s adviser, Michael Koncz, as saying.
Gay described Pacquiao as being ecstatic 90 minutes after elections ended and quoted the world pound-for-pound champion as saying: “It?s a landslide!”
Unlike in 2007 when he was soundly beaten in his first foray into politics by Darlene Antonino-Custodio in Gen. Santos City, Pacquiao ran a more organized campaign this time, spending more than $1 million of his own money, part of it used to finance the nerve center of his campaign headquarters at a small house just outside the Gen. Santos city center.
Gay said the house was equipped with a computerized nerve center of flat screen monitors, multiple computer banks and walls covered with detailed precinct maps and specific campaign strategies for each area.
Results reported electronically to the Commission on Elections were relayed directly to Pacquiao through mobile phones and powerful two-way radios by his poll watchers.
