It is my personal belief that Pacquiao likes to box, but no longer loves to box. It is also my belief the main reason he is fighting is because he needs the money. It has been an open secret in the boxing community for years that Pacquiao wasn’t good with his money and has likely blown through millions of dollars.
It has gotten so bad that he had to take advances from Bob Arum (with interest) before some of his fights. Now, even though he just made $18 million tax free dollars (but apparently not tax free as you will see below) from his fight with Brandon Rios, he is saying he doesn’t even have enough money to help the typhoon victims in the Philippines.
Despite returning like a hero from beating Brandon Rios over the weekend, Manny Pacquiao said Tuesday he has no money to keep his promise to help typhoon victims because Philippine revenue authorities have frozen his bank accounts.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue says Pacquiao hasn’t proved he paid taxes in 2008-2009. It has assessed that Pacquiao, once one of the world’s highest paid athletes, owed 2.2 billion pesos ($50 million) in back taxes as of July.
Pacquiao, the wealthiest member of the Philippine Congress, said Tuesday he borrowed over 1 million pesos ($22,700) to purchase relief supplies before his fight Sunday with Rios in Macau and will borrow more to keep his word to typhoon victims. Pacquiao said he plans to provide aid to more than 10,000 families.
“I appeal to them to remove the garnishment so that I can move and pay for my staff’s salaries,” Pacquiao told reporters in his southern hometown of General Santos city. “I am not a criminal or a thief.”
He said his wife’s accounts have also been frozen.
Pacquiao said if he had not paid the right taxes in the United States, he would have been arrested during one of his visits there.
“The money that was garnished by (the Bureau of Internal Revenue) is not stolen,” he said. “This came from all of the punches, beatings, blood and sweat that I endured in the ring.”
According to the Philippines auditors Pacquiao only has $22k to his name, I find that hard to believe, but once again it makes you wonder where all of his money is going and if he is being robbed blind by his promoters and yes men.
Hope he gets it all straighten out, not just for him, but for his people as well.
You can read here how Pacquiao may have blown over $200 million.
