EDITORIAL - Yellow gloves

Before his fight with Shane Mosley, Manny Pacquiao said he would be donning yellow-colored gloves to signify unity for the Filipino people. Nobody took up Pacquiao on that statement, pro or con, perhaps in deference to his wishes. Besides, nobody wanted to distract the champion prior to the fight.

But now the fight is over, which Pacquiao won handily over the obviously old and scared Mosley. So what did Pacquiao really mean by unity, which his yellow-colored gloves were supposed to signify? If Pacquiao meant uniting the Filipinos behind him for his fight, there really is no need for any color to do that.

Whenever he fights, the whole Philippines is united behind him. The whole country literally stops to watch and cheer him on. He could wear any color on his gloves, trunks, robe, mouthpiece or whatever and still expect the support of the entire nation. So what unity was Pacquiao talking about?

As everybody knows, Pacquiao has embarked on another career to tide him over when his boxing days are over. Right now he is a congressman. God knows what else he can be politically with his fame and his money. The unity Pacquiao speaks of must certainly pertain to politics, yellow being the color of the times in the Philippines.

But as far as political colors go, Pacquiao was not yellow during the last election. He was orange. He was identified with Manny Villar. So, does his use of yellow gloves and his understanding that the color signifies unity mean a not so subtle attempt to court the good graces of the prevailing administration?

Actually, it is not necessary, again, for Pacquiao to use colors if changing political affiliations is all he wants. All he has to do is ask the present administration and it would be more than willing to take him in. In fact, given his stature and popularity, no political party worth its salt will refuse him.

It was a big mistake though to use colors if political accommodation was all Pacquiao wanted. Yellow may be the color of the present administration, but it is a color that is swiftly fading in light of the present administration’s constant bungling. And yellow was never the color of the majority, there having been more people who voted against yellow than those who did. Yellow does not signify unity.