MANNY V. Pangilinan has shot down talks that he’ll be seeking the presidency of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) in its scheduled election next month.
Pangilinan said he has no plan to run against Jose ‘Peping’ Cojuangco, who will be seeking a fourth straight term as head of the country’s Olympic body on November 25.
“This time, it’s not really (on running for POC presidency). Ang dami kong trabaho,di ba?” he said when asked about the matter during Game One of the PBA Governors Cup finals between Meralco and Barangay Ginebra at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The political aspect of the job alone is enough to turn him off from running for the position.
“Tsaka ayoko, political yun, e,” he added.
As it is, Pangilinan is no longer eligible to run for the presidency under POC rules since only heads of the various National Sports Associations (NSAs) are qualified to do so.
The chairman of PLDT and Smart Communications has stepped down as president of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) two months ago.
If his group has any plan to contest the presidency, it has to field other candidates like new SBP head Al Panlilio or boxin association chief Ricky Vargas.
Pangilinan almost contested the POC presidency against Cojuangco in 2012 but nothing came out of it, allowing the 82-year-old Cojuangco to run unopposed.
“(I was) not approached, but some people suggested it,” said the man they call MVP. “Di ba years ago, that was also raised. Hindi naman nangyari yun.”
"Siguro we’ll deal with it when we get there, kung mangyari man yun,” he stressed.
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