THERE were two painful developments that our country and people had to live with, at least for the time being, this past week, that undermined the integrity of boxing under the leadership of Games and Amusements Board chairman Ramon Guanzon and the disastrous showing of the Philippines in the Southeast Asian Games in Singapore.
We will leave the SEA Games debacle for next week.
GAB chairman Guanzon, who played host to the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation Convention in his hometown of Bacolod City, together with his Boxing Division Chief Dr. Nasser Cruz and their sycophants, insulted Filipinos on the same day we celebrated our cherished Independence when they conspired to allow boxer Ardie Boyse to use the family name Singwancha in the main event in a bout against World Boxing Council Youth world super featherweight champion Argie “Bomba” Toquero.
Last year, we assailed the GAB and condemned the unwarranted practice of allowing Thai businessman Naris Singwancha to affix his family name to the family name of Filipino boxers, pointing out that he could do what he wanted in Thailand where name changes are a dime a dozen, but not in the Philippines.
We said that Filipinos, just like other peoples with a sense of heritage and history, must surely consider their family names precious and not to be trifled with or peddled for a price. It is for this reason that that Filipino parents, father in particular, always long for a son (although they welcome their daughters just as much) because sons carry the family name from one generation to another.
Indeed, Kabalarian Philosophy states that “the power of a name and its value has long been immortalized in prose , poetry and religious ceremony. Everyone recognizes himself or herself by name.”
We insisted that substituting a fighter’s family name with that of someone else – Singwancha to be specific – is worse than death because a family name in many respects is sacred and means everything.
To their credit, the GAB passed a resolution that prevented Filipino boxers from using foreign family names instead of their own.
It was in response to our persistent efforts to get the GAB to act on the blatant anomaly, where several fighters use the name Singwancha, with the businessman reportedly buying the right to have boxers use his family name from their managers or promoters.
In one of the “Flash” Elorde Annual Awards, we had the ridiculous and confusing sight of two Filipino boxers being introduced as Singwanchas!
The issue actually came to a head in an ALA Promotions – ABS-CBN “Pinoy Pride XIX ” fight card in Davao City, when we were asked to allow the use of the Singwancha name for Rex “Wakee” Salud’s boxer Marco Demecillo in his OPBF super flyweight title fight against King Arthur Villanueva.
We flatly refused and even ensured that the TV graphics did not display the name Singwancha much to the irritation of the Thai businessman and Salud himself.
GAB Chairman Guanzon acted on our protests and later told The Standard that under a resolution approved by the GAB board, “basically, we will not tolerate the use of any foreign names anymore.”
Guanzon also told us that while the Singwancha name was attached to several boxers in the GAB ratings in the past, the Singwancha name would be removed in subsequent ratings.
But Singwancha didn’t give up. He requested well-known boxing manager/promoter Aljoe Jaro to seek the assistance of the widely followed internet site boxrec.com and its chief boxing editor for the Philippines Jeremy Lantz to allow the use of the Singwancha name in boxrec.com’s published fight schedules and results. Lantz politely refused the request and forwarded copies of his reply to the GAB as well as this reporter.
Lantz said: “I do understand the situation that you are requesting. I do know that you both also agree with Mr. Nathanielsz’s philosophy, but are trapped between business and ethics. Boxers, like soldiers, are to be held in the utmost respect. As their lives hang in the balance every time they step into the squared ring for battle. The fabric of their DNA is that of a Philippine warrior and their proper birth names give their family and nation pride. Just as the name Sonnyt Boy Jaro will never be forgotten in the Jaro household. But will the world ever know current Thai boxer Sirimongkol Singwancha (83-2, 54 KOs) as Sirimingkol Eairnthuarn?”
Lantz quoted Thomas Jefferson who wrote: “We hold these truths to be elf-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life , liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
He added: “This must apply to man not being stripped of his birth name in order for the accolades of that man’s successes to be directed towards his manager/promoter. I sometimes wonder if Mr. Singwancha would be willing to change his God-given name. It would be the undoing of Philippine pride and credibility and would create a mess in boxrec.com such as what is currently happening in Thailand with the constant name changes associated with Thai boxers’ sponsors/promoters names constantly being substituted at the same frequency as an exchange rate instead of using birth names for Thai boxers.”
In an unforgivable about-face and in violation of its own resolution and a blatant disregard for integrity, the GAB allowed the fight card promoted by Brico Santig, who appears to be a favored matchmaker/promoter of the GAB in apparent cooperation with Naris Singwancha at the OPBF Convention to allow the use of the name Singwancha affixed to that of No. 2-ranked Arde Boyse and in posters plastered all over Bacolod City and the convention site. Worse still, the ring announcer barked out the name Singwancha when introducing boxer Ardie Boyse.
We have complained in the past when GAB ring announcer Boy Villanera not merely announced the name Singwancha when introducing fighters, but often went out of his way to salute the presence of the Thai businessman and asks the fans to applaud. What manner of men are these who, by their actions, continue to erode the integrity of the GAB and the sport of boxing
It is a well known fact that in exchange for the use of his name, Singwancha pays off managers and promoters and is often see shamelessly giving the winner of a fight a couple of hundred dollars in the ring and in full view of the public.
At every turn, Guanzon boasts of the fact that the GAB is under the Office of the President, Benigno Aquino III, and uses this to get away with a series of shenanigans as a political appointee, including wasting taxpayers’ money by attending conventions of world boxing organizations held abroad along with Commissioners Fritz Gaston and Atty. Aquil Tamano, among others.
Must we bear with these individuals with a lack of conscience, self-respect and integrity until next year’s presidential elections when men and women of their ill are cast away into the dustbin of a worthless era.
