Pacman lays out plan for Sarangani in first privilege speech

“Let’s get ready to rumble." With this familiar line, heard mostly at the start of his matches, Philippine boxing icon Manny Pacquiao on Tuesday delivered his first privilege speech as a member of the House of Representatives. In his well-applauded speech, Pacquiao, who is representing Sarangani province, laid out his plans for his 476,514 constituents. He said his programs and projects would focus on livelihood, health, education and access. “Forty percent of the people of Sarangani have no adequate housing, no adequate food and no proper nutrition. For those 40 percent, it’s not just a statistic. It’s their daily experience of life," he said. Biggest fight The 31-year-old seven world division title holder said he considers his stint as a lawmaker as his “biggest fight." He noted that as part of his preparations, he enrolled at the Development Academy of the Philippines for an executive coaching in development legislation and governance. He said he also read laws, local and national policies and studied the existing plans and projects for Sarangani, which is among the country’s poorest provinces.

Based on experience Pacquiao said just like many of his constituents, he has experienced hunger, homelessness and inability to go to school due poverty. Now that he has “reaped a tremendous harvest of success," he said it is time to “use it for the good of others." “To whom much is given, much is required. With great power, comes great responsibility," Pacquiao said, quoting a popular line from comic series Spider-man. Plans for Sarangani The boxer-turned-lawmaker said he intends to diversify the source of income of his constituents. He said instead of relying solely on fishing, Sarangani residents should be taught how to improve production, post-harvest and marketing processes for corn, rice and coconut, and cooperative coffee farming. Pacquiao said he also wants to establish their own provincial hospital, and get Philhealth benefits for his constituents. He also plans to have a continuous educational upgrading in Sarangani, coordinate with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and put up Placement Assistance Coordination and Manpower Assessment Network Centers. He also wants to make Sarangani accessible to the rest of the country through the RORO (roll on, roll off) ports. Pro-athletes Pacquiao also asked his colleagues to work together to help the Filipino athletes get the country’s first gold medal in the Olympics. At the end of his speech, the Filipino boxing idol thanked his wife Jinkee "for all her loving support," and offered a prayer: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference." – KBK, GMANews.TV