- Sports analyst Ronnie Nathanielz believes Filipinos will eventually forgive Pacman
- He admits Pacquiao may have committed the mistake of indiscretion
- However, Nathanielz says Pacquiao should be commended for standing by his convictions
MANILA, Philippines – Sports analyst and commentator Ronnie Nathanielz believes Filipinos will eventually forgive Manny Pacquiao over his ‘indiscretion’ when the latter compared same-sex couples to animals.
Pacquiao’s homophobic slur sparked outrage online, prompting the LGBT community to denounce his ‘offensive remark’ and campaign against his senatorial bid in 2016.
But Nathanielz said Filipinos have always been known to be forgiving in nature, and they will soon forgive the man who has been the pride of this country and has helped a lot in putting the Philippines back into the global sports map.
“May utang ng loob ang mga Pilipino [The Filipinos are indebted to him].The Filipinos are very forgiving,” Nathanielz said on ABS-CBN’s The Score on Thursday, February 18.
However, the sports analyst admitted that Pacman, who is running for a Senate seat in the coming May election, made a mistake of indiscretion for his poor choice of words when he was quoted as saying that same-sex couples are “worse than animals”.
“His mistake is the mistake of indiscretion. Considering the situation he is in now – running for a political office – he should have been a little more circumspect in saying what he said,” said the Sri Lankan-born Nathanielz.
He also believes Pacquaio’s fans-turned-critics today will remember the fighter’s “exploits in the ring and his performance outside the ring” which both drew international recognition for the country.
“They know Pacquiao brought so much pride and joy to Filipinos, he helped this country redeem its position internationally at a time we are almost down and out,” Nathanielz continued. “Because he’s a decent good human being.”
But Nathanielz acknowledged the uproar caused by Pacquiao’s anti-gay slur may not die away so soon. However, the man should be commended for apologizing and standing by his convictions at the same, despite facing strong criticisms.
“He showed the guts to stand by his position, not like most other politicians who don’t have the courage to stand by their convictions. He did and I salute him for that,” explained Nathanielz.
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