The Philippine Daily Inquirer recently named Manny Pacquiao as their Filipino of the Year for 2008. I’m sure a lot of people will question how a sporting personality could get such an award for the second year running and why? The Inquirer cited their reasons as follows:

 

“For scaling this forbidding peak of achievement, for reinventing himself as a compleat boxer of high discipline and uncommon gallantry and, not least, for inspiring millions of Filipinos with his uplifting example of hard work and sense of purpose, Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao is the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Filipino of the Year for 2008.”

 

 

Or as Inquirer chair Marixi Prieto simply explained, “He has remained humble even with all his achievements. It just confirms his award.”**

 

 

So… what is it about Manny Pacquiao that unifies the Filipinos? What is his appeal? Why is he so popular and adored by the masses? I asked the following their thoughts.

 

 

Melanie Porcuna Jimenez
“I think we Filipinos (in general) like looking up to someone of our own kind who has made his mark, as exceptionally as Manny Pacquiao has done.

 

Having met him personally and spent a bit of time (his first fight in Vegas — which he lost) in his company back then, I feel his appeal comes from his sincerity.”

 

 

Jaycee Matias
“In a country where you get a daily serving of poverty, strife and corruption, I believe Manny Pacquiao’s sorta fairy tale success of beating the odds brought hope and pride for the entire nation.

 

It’s an undeclared national holiday when he fights. And when he wins I feel as if it’s Christmas again! The entire country celebrates regardless whether you’re from the upper class or you live below the poverty line. It’s a momentary bliss and you forget all your problems, all we know at that moment is that we’re one country united rooting for our hero.”

 

 

Adrian Williams (Philippine Generations)
“His appeal stems from the fact he started out the same as most Filipinos, on the breadline. He worked hard and became the best. He is also a devout Christian and a symbol of the modern Filipino. He has gone abroad and beaten the best, which is key. For a lot of Filipinos he is a symbol of hope that if you work hard enough you can get respect abroad by just being good at what you do. Remember, for one reason or another, we are a revolutionary people, we have literally been fighting against something for the past 200+ years, Pacquiao is our fighter!

 

We also have no other world class athletes in major world sports. If we had a world class golfer, they would be a hero! However boxing is symbolic of the Philippines; hard work, strength, discipline, honour, fighting spirit and pride, something our people value very highly.”

 

 

Jonathan Evangelista
“I knew about Manny when I lived out in the Philippines back in 2000 till early 2003. When I got back to the UK in 2003, I saw him beat Barrera. I have always been a boxing fan but having a Filipino boxer to follow made me an event bigger fan. Countries such as Brazil have footballers, we have Manny. (Oh and a few pool players and bowling bods). But he is currently the only positive role model to have come from the Philippines.”

 

 

Charlene Quiambao
“The Pacman is admired and adored by Filipinos, as not only does the Philippines now have someone that represents our country, he can also relate to working hard for a living. He also has the support of OFWs and Kababayan all over the world. Despite the many corrupted stories that surface in the news on a daily basis, he is a breath of fresh air.”

 

Posted on 6 March 2009 by Lani in Awards, Culture

Tagged filipino of the year, manny pacquiao, the philippine daily inquirer