Sen. Manny Pacquiao. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Just days after losing to Cuban boxer Yordenis Ugas, Senator Manny Pacquiao is back, renewing his allegations of corruption in the government.
In an exclusive interview aired Thursday on “TV Patrol,” Pacquiao attacked corrupt public officials for taking advantage of the people even during this pandemic.
It was again his wish for thieves in the government to be brought to jail.
“Tingnan mo ngayon, nandyan pa yung pandemic. Kahit nandyan ang pandemic, grabe ang corruption. Ang kakapal ng mga apog ng mga ito…” the senator said.
(Look, we are still in pandemic now and yet there’s too much corruption. These people are shameless.)
“Yun ngang pera ko na hard-earned money ko, hard earned money ha, nagtitiis ako, nagtri-training ako, lumalaban ako, dugo at pawis ang puhunan ko, yung income ko kung alam lang nila binabalik ko halos kahati, mahigit pa sa kalahati ang binabalik ko sa tao tapos itong pera ng gobyerno, biyong bilyon hindi lang milyon, bilyon- bilyon ninanakaw lang?”
(Even my hard-earned money, sweat and blood, I give back to the government almost half or more of my income, when billions of pesos of government money, not just millions, are being stolen?)
Before leaving for the United States last July for his boxing match, he listed several government agencies allegedly marred by corruption, including the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health, and the Department of Energy.
Pacquiao adds DSWD, DOE, DENR to his list of ‘corrupt’ agencies
As an example, he alleges that the Social Amelioration Program of DSWD did not distribute P10.4 billion worth of funding.
In response, the DSWD officials immediately declared their readiness to answer any inquiries concerning the senator’s claim.
DSWD ready to face probe, clarify Pacquiao’s corruption claims
In spite of not having decided on his political plans for 2022, Pacquiao said that his focus has always been on finding solutions to the country’s problems, especially on how he could help uplift the lives of the poor.
“Kung kaya ko lang lahat ng income ko, yung pera ko yung kayamanan mabigyan ko silang lahat gawin ko lahat yun, kung kaya ko lang. Ganun ako ka dedicated para sa mga tao. Ganun ko kamahal ang ating bansa, ang mga kababayan natin,” he said.
(If I can only give them all my income, my wealth, my savings, and my money, I will do it if that is all I can do. That’s how dedicated I am. How I love our country, how I love our countrymen.)