Pacquiao to build villa in high-end enclave in Albay

By Mar S. Arguelles
Inquirer Southern Luzon

 7share29 22

CAGRARAY ISLAND, Philippines—Manny Pacquaio is set to buy a 1,000-square-meter lot worth P12 million and build a vacation villa at the luxurious Misibis Bay Resort here.

Pacquiao, awed by the luxury and privacy of the resort that is a 25-minute ride by fastcraft from Legazpi City, said he intends to build a villa in the exclusive enclave where he and his family can take a break in between his gruelling boxing commitments and work as a member of the House of Representative representing his province of Sarangani.

“Nagustuhan ko itong lugar, tahimik at maganda (I like this place. It’s beautiful and very private). Upon my arrival here on Thursday I was able to sleep for a straight 16 hours,” he said on Saturday. “I’d like to build a small vacation villa here so that I can frequently visit Albay.”

Pacquiao said he and his and wife Jinky have toured the five-hectare resort, located within the 5,000-hectare Cagraray Island, and were impressed by the resort’s facilities.

Elizaldy Co, president and chief executive officer of Sunwest Group that operates Misibis Bay Resort, Embarcadero Mall and a string of  hotels here and in Manila, offered Pacquiao the 1,000-sq. m.  lot at the resorts’  retirement and vacation village.

Pacquiao, Jinky and some  members of the Team Pacquiao led by Boboy Fernandez, his boxing trainer who is a resident of Polangui, Albay, flew in from Manila on Thursday on a private plane.

His presence in Legazpi was on the invitation of his colleagues in Congress—AKB party list Representative Alfredo Garbin and Albay 2nd district Representative Al Francis Bichara—and Co.

On arrival in Legazpi, Pacquiao paid a courtesy call on Mayor Geraldine Rosal and obliged her request to hold a motorcade and tour the city’s main thoroughfares, which brought out thousands of residents who gave the boxing idol a rousing welcome.

Pacquiao said the province had a lot to offer, with the beautiful scenery providing a lush backdrop to tourist establishments.

“Despite being a typhoon prone area, the area remains impressively scenic, and attractive,” said Pacquiao, adding that he would promote Albay in future trips abroad.

Pacquiao on Thursday also rode an all-terrain vehicle and visited  Mount Mayon’s lava dome at Barangay Mabinit in Legazpi City and was stunned by the sight of a four-story-tall lava front spewed by the volcano during its 2004 eruption.

At the Misibis Resort, he and his team engaged in jet skiing and scuba diving in the waters of Albay Gulf facing the Pacific Ocean. They also  rode the zipline at the resort’s EcoPark.

Pacquiao and his entourage ended their three-day visit here Saturday and boarded his chartered plane at noon for General Santos City, his hometown.

Pacman: 'Pag-asa, Tiyaga at Determinasyon'

Pacman: 'Pag-asa, Tiyaga at Determinasyon'

Wala Lang

By DR. JAIME C. LAYA

MANILA, Philippines -- Lying hungry on cardboard spread on bare ground and glimpsing stars through gaps in the mountain hut’s cogon roof, the little boy’s dream was simply a solid roof and a laden table.  If anyone deserves a mansion in North Forbes, it is he.

Manny Pacquiao’s autobiography (first published in English as told to Timothy James, Pacman: My Story of Hope, Resilience and Never-Say-Never Determination) is now available in Tagalog.  Everyone should read it.

Pacquiao was born in December 1978 in a remote sitio of Kibawe, Bukidnon in Mindanao’s mountainous heart.  At age two, the family moved to the equally secluded Barangay Tango in Glan, Sarangani literally at road’s end.  There Manny spent his boyhood, five kilometers to the nearest settlement that he and his brother Bobby walked to school.  Sometimes with only a banana each for the day, they were mocked by schoolmates for their poverty.

Hauling supplies and water up the stony and dusty (or muddy) road was part of daily life.  At age six or seven, Manny would hike six kilometers to the seashore to help fishermen haul in their nets.  He would set aside two of the few fish tossed his way and sell the rest.

At age 10 (1988), the family moved to Gen. Santos City.  His was not an easy childhood—Manny notes how wounded he was with the loss of his puppy at his father’s hand and how his mother kept the family going after she and four young children were left on their own.  Aling Dionisia did laundry, cleaned others’ houses and roasted peanuts that her children sold on the streets.  Dropping out of school at 12, Manny became “a one-man traveling grocery store” hawking “bread, peanuts, doughnuts, water—you name it, we had it.”

Deciding that he had a chance in boxing, Manny began training.  His life-changing moment was seeing the 1990 Tyson vs. Douglas match and realizing that underdogs could be champions. “To this day, I still watch replays of that fight because it still amazes me.”

At age 15 (1993) and without his mother knowing, Manny stowed away to Manila.  His first, excruciating, job was scraping rust off scrap metal.  He trained at a Sampaloc gym and supported himself (and sending home P300/month), as gardener, construction worker, restaurant helper, tailor, flower vendor.  When jobless, he slept in the open, accepting restaurant leftovers only if he could work for it—wash dishes, help clean.  He refused to beg, no matter what.

Pacman turned professional in 1995 (on a TV show for P50 per fight), first fought abroad in 1998 (Tokyo and Bangkok) and reached Los Angeles in 2001.  He was running out of money but managed by singing karaoke and playing billiards for money.  That was also when he met Freddie Roach.  He won that first U.S. bout and plugged on to become “the most accomplished boxer, pound for pound, inside and outside the ring.”

It says something that he did all these with hardly anyone, least of all government, noticing.

When in Cebu City, please visit gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs.

Comments are cordially invited, addressed to walalang@mb.com.ph.

Sarangani rep Manny Pacquiao to seek gubernatorial seat in 2013

Sarangani rep Manny Pacquiao to seek gubernatorial seat in 
2013

By ROWENA JOY A. SANCHEZ

July 14, 2011, 12:14pm

Manny Pacquiao: From congressman to future governor of Sarangani? (AP Photo)

MANILA, Philippines – Boxer, actor and congressman Manny Pacquiao will try to further his political career by running as governor of Sarangani in 2013.

The Sarangani representative will join forces and “swap” positions with the current governor of the province, Miguel Rene Dominguez, in the upcoming election, reported Bomboradyo.

The announcement came following their closed-door meeting with mayors of Sarangani, the report added.

In a report by the Asian Correspondent, Dominguez said that “the governorship will be a good training ground" for Pacquiao "to serve his people directly" as well as for his "future political plans."

The 2013 election will mark the third time Pacquiao will run for office, the first of which was back in 2007 when he lost to Darlene Antonino-Custodio in the congressional race for the first district of South Cotabato. She currently serves General Santos City---Pacquiao’s hometown---as mayor.

Pacquiao and Dominguez, who originated from rival parties in last year's election, deemed that their new-found alliance will benefit their constituents, the same Bomboradyo report stated.

The report added that Sarangani officials, as well as the two politicians’ supporters, are happy with the announcement.

As early as now, Pacquiao and Dominguez are already making the effort to establish their rapport---by embarking on a scuba-diving “bonding” activity in Gian, Sarangani, on July 14, said another Bomboradyo report.

Pacquiao moves to Forbes but not mother

By Bayani San Diego Jr.
Philippine Daily Inquirer

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK Boxing legend and Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao will soon be moving into this house on Cambridge Street at North Forbes Park, Makati City. This early, residents on Millionaires’ Row are reportedly eager to welcome their newest neighbor. His immediate neighbors include Sen. Loren Legarda, Tonyboy Cojuangco and the Thai ambassador. RAFFY LERMA

Boxing icon Manny Pacquiao will soon be moving to Millionaires’ Row, but will Mommy Dionisia bunk in with her celebrity son?

Pacman, as the Sarangani congressman is known the world over, has reportedly bought a multimillion-peso property in Makati’s Forbes Park, probably the most expensive gated community in the country.

The Pacquiaos’ new home on Cambridge Street, North Forbes, cost a reported P388 million and was reportedly bought from a bank president. Celebrity architect Anton Mendoza has been put in charge of renovating it.

Pacquiao’s business manager Eric Pineda confirmed the boxer’s purchase of Forbes Park property, but declined to comment on the price tag.

“It’s true, but the cost is confidential,” Pineda said. “I’m not at liberty to divulge the figures. I’m sure journalists would have an idea about the cost of a Forbes Park home.”

“He can very well afford to buy a house in Forbes Park,” he added.

New neighbors

Felipe Gozon, chair and CEO of the GMA 7 television network who is a Forbes Park resident, is happy to count Pacman as a neighbor. “It will be an honor if he moves to our village,” he said.

Pacquiao will also have for new neighbors Senator Loren Legarda, businessman Tonyboy Cojuangco and the Thai ambassador to the Philippines.

Gozon said he had heard that Pacquiao was eyeing a 3,000-square-meter property in neighboring Dasmariñas Village.

“But if he becomes my neighbor, that would be a great privilege. He is a worldwide celebrity,” he said.

Pacquiao “makes us proud to be Filipino,” said Gozon whose network is preparing a new TV show for the boxer to replace his old sitcom, “Show Me Da Manny.”

“No one else has achieved Pacquiao’s historic accomplishment of eight division championships. He made boxing popular in the country. As a result, we are now discovering other talented athletes who are following in his footsteps. He inspires everyone to do well and rise from the ranks,” Gozon said.

Good investment

According to a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the “deal will soon be finalized.”

But he said the cost of the property is actually lower, “the rumored price is exaggerated.”

“I think he has made a good investment in the Forbes Park property. It’s a new, modern house. They need a lot of space because they have quite a lot of people in their staff,” the source said.

But will Mommy Dionisia be moving in with the Pacquiaos?

“I believe Mommy Dionisia won’t move to Makati because she has her own mansion in General Santos,” the source said.

“Manny built a house for her that’s a replica of his own home in the province,” he said.

Wilson Tieng, president of Solar Entertainment which broadcasts Pacquiao’s prizefights in the country, said the boxer “deserves to own a house in Forbes Park. Imagine how painful each punch he gets in the ring.”

“Based on his earnings, he can afford to buy that real-estate property. His most recent fight alone earned him a guaranteed purse of $20 million (about P865 million),” commented another source.

Drop in the bucket

Whether exaggerated or not, the reported value of the Forbes Park home is just a drop in the bucket of the fabled Pacquiao wealth.

Recent reports put Pacquiao as the richest legislator in the land. He’s the only billionaire in Congress, according to an Inquirer report.

The Sarangani congressman’s net worth stood at P1.1 billion as of Dec. 31, 2010, according to the statement of assets and liabilities and net worth he filed with the House of Representatives.

His assets at the time included P397.9 million in real properties and P736.3 million in personal and other properties. He has no liabilities.

These figures do not yet include his earnings from his latest fight.

The Inquirer reported that Pacquiao stood to earn P1.3 billion ($30 million) from the Mosley fight, which he won.

This is because apart from the guaranteed purse of $20 million, Pacquiao would get a percentage of the pay-per-view buys, closed-circuit tickets, gate receipts and merchandise sales, according to Top Rank’s Bob Arum, the promoter of the fight.

Pacquiao also gets a considerable income from endorsement deals here and abroad. US computer company Hewlett-Packard has hired him as pitchperson for $1 million.

He is also a prized talent of the GMA 7 network.