Pacquiao and Palabra de Honor

WITH a good five weeks before his mega fight with Hatton, Pacquiao has already caused a self-inflicted black eye because of his attempt to renege on his contract with Solar entertainment. And the root cause of it all is, you guessed it - MONEY. For many years now, the Pambansang Kamao has been a source of great pride for Filipinos around the world for the courage and superb talent he has displayed in boxing. His success as a four-time world champion is a testament to the saying that yes, THE FILIPINO CAN. And yet, his penchant to flip-flop on his decisions concerning financial deals now seems to smear his lofty reputation and image. Wasn't it not long ago when Pacquiao attempted to turn his back on Top Rank to accommodate a seemingly more lucrative offer from Golden Boy? And now this brouhaha on the Solar-GMA-ABSCBN airing rights. Are there more financial flip-flops to come? Manny cannot say that he was coaxed into reading a prepared statement when he decided to turn his back on Solar. Was he under duress or grave threat to do so? It's bad to threaten a "national hero." Manny is his own man on this. His subsequent apology to Solar and GMA did not show his courage at all. It did not exonerate him from the mess. In his apology, he merely shifted the blame to ABS-CBN whom he said made a prepared statement for him and broke the deal on a so-called video "embargo." Duh. Paging ABS-CBN--would you do that to a national hero? No doubt, Manny is now extremely wealthy beyond his and our wildest imaginations. His contract with Solar was probably loose change for him. Yet, the latest stunt he committed just shows a major crack in character--that of PALABRA DE HONOR. Ah yes, money can indeed change people. Name: Angelo de Guzman, Eastwood, Quezon City, via e-mail