When Carlos Padilla dropped the bombshell he once cheated to favor Manny Pacquiao against Australian Nedal Hussein, many quickly asked why tell the story that happened at the turn of the century? That’s more than two decades ago. It settled into the dustbin of history, but unsettling. The cheating may have prescribed under written law, but it haunts under unseen, albeit more exacting rules of fair play. History does not bury the truth, it preserves it timeless for future generations to learn from.
Why confess? Don’t fall for the ruse. This newly-acquired habit of Filipinos questioning motive and credibility deflects the issue of cheating to the whistleblower. Notice the standard defense of public servants accused of thievery – politically motivated, even if documented. But why would they change the template, it works. In this country, those who tell the truth are more punished than those who suppress it.
But this revelation is unique – the cheater is also the whistleblower, which makes it credible than ever, even if tweaked by his daughter. So the better question is or should be, why not? Truth is timeless. Lying, cheating and stealing can never be undone or rewritten. But it can be punished. And timely, the world-renowned boxing referee confessed during his induction to the boxing hall of fame.
Where this places the greatest Filipino boxer of all time is a curious case. But he is not complicit. When Padilla saw Pacquiao on his knees, he eternalized the mandatory eight-count to allow the Filipino to recover. When the Australian bled in the head, he pulled another trick by ruling a punch caused it, instead of a head butt. It constrained the doctor to declare Hussein unfit to continue the fight. Manny won, and many more.
Padilla cheated on his own, for the wrong reason. This is even flawed, nothing justifies cheating, except cheating death, but not the living, or the dying because of cheating. Carlos did it because he is a Filipino refereeing a fight of a Filipino watched by millions of Filipinos. It is not patriotism. It is, and will always be, cheating.
While not complicit, Pacquiao benefited. But refuses to call it cheating, it is homecourt advantage. No, it remains cheating, or homecourt cheating. So, we can’t expect him to agree with Hussein. The bitter loser who now agonizes what could have been urges to declare the fight a no contest. Pacquiao should, he did not win it fair and square. An unseen hand gave him a hand. If he divests the title he did not earn, he earns the respect of the international boxing community. Never mind his compatriots, they condone not only cheating but also lying and stealing, even their own future.
If not, he should at least submit whatever the special panel created to review the interview finds and decides, whether to nullify the fight and/or mortalize the immortalized for his mortal sin. Padilla is best remembered as the third man in the bloody canvas of the Thrilla in Manila between heavyweights Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier in 1975. But that is not anymore his legacy, telling the truth is. Although how he told the truth, like he was proud of the lie, is another story altogether.