We were in General Santos last weekend as members of the House of Delegates of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.
The IBP By Laws ordains all officers of the different chapters from all the 9 regions all over the country to convene bi-annually to examine the state of affairs of the association and propose changes or improvements as may be necessary.
Most of the 100 or so delegates, some from as far away Ilocos Region, came primarily to fulfill this duty. Most of us had a second motivation to go to GenSan.
We were promised an encounter with Manny Pacquiao, as he was to be our luncheon speaker on the first day of the convention. The man who would be Senator of the Republic of the Philippines never came.
There was no indication that Pacquiao would be a no show. As early as breakfast, his advance party was in the hotel and was talking with some of the delegates and the organizing committee.
Lunch came, no Pacquiao.
We spent the lull having our pictures taken for the new IBP Identification Card. The process was suspended and we were asked to go back to the convention hall. We were filled with anticipation because we thought that Pacquiao had finally arrived because over lunch it was repeatedly announced that he was coming in a little while.
Still there was not a shadow of Pacquiao inside the hall.
Even then, the afternoon moderator for the afternoon session kept on plugging about Pacquiao’s eventual arrival.
Either she knew that the luncheon speech was never going to happen and just wanted to keep us in the hall for the entire afternoon session, or she was also as blind as the rest of us that a humongous snub was about to happen.
There was no necessity for deception in order to make us stay.
GenSan is a hot and humid place, more so at this time of the year. Very few of us would have ventured to go out of the comforts of the hotel and get out on the streets at the risk of being run over by the thousands of tricycles which is still the main mode of public transportation in the city.
The afternoon session ended. There was no mention anymore about the luncheon speaker who never came. At least an explanation should have been made.
Or if he has become a genteel man as a result of his billions, an apology would have been appropriate. Neither of the two was given.
And this person is going to be a member of the Senate of the Philippines!
My co-delegates have two theories for the Pacquiao no show. Either he was a little intimidated by the prospect of speaking to a group of lawyers from all over the country, or he found it a waste of his time to be speaking to a small group of 100 even if they are lawyers.
The first is unlikely as Pacquiao has faced more intimidating audiences. It was probably more of the second.
He found it not worth his while to be speaking to a motley group of lawyers. What Pacquiao did not realize is that the group was just representatives of lawyers from all over the country, most of whom are influential in their respective localities.
Well, there are more tricycle drivers good enough to elect him to the Senate.
Definitely, Pacquiao lost a few votes because of his lack of courtesy. He did not lose mine though because I was never going to vote for him in the first place.
I grew up admiring a Senate composed of a Claro M. Recto, Raul Manglapus, Arturo Tolentino, Jovito Salonga, Benigno Aquino and other distinguished names who were the cream of the crop and were elected to the highest lawmaking body after having distinguished themselves in public service.
I am unlucky enough to witness Senators who were elected because of sheer popularity: movie stars, basketball players, etc. Most if not all of them ended up being appointed to the Committee on Silence.
And now, a champion boxer.
As Onyok, the child phenom in the telenovela “Ang Probinsiyano” would probably say: “Ay naku!”
As an avid sports fan, I will never stop admiring Pacquiao as an athlete. But I do not think I can have the same admiration for him as a person. As the quotation goes, “You can take the man out of the slum, but never the slum from the man.”
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