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Pacquiao, who cemented his status as the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in his masterful eight-round conquest of Oscar de la Hoya in their Dream Match in Las Vegas Sunday, drew waves of screaming adulation from people lining the streets along the route of the caravan.

Thousands of Filipinos braved the rain to catch a glimpse of and cheer boxing hero Manny Pacquiao in a victory motorcade with a convoy of over 50 vehicles that brought traffic to a crawl in Quezon City, Manila, Makati and Pasay City yesterday.

Wearing a white shirt, Manny was atop a mini-truck carrying 19 other people including Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Lito Atienza.

Pacquiao was mobbed by officials and employees of City Hall and DENR.

In the motorcade, Pacquiao gamely acknowledged the cheers of his fans, opting not to take shelter even as members of the convoy began taking out umbrellas to shield themselves from the rain.

Atienza, who organized the event, said the atmosphere was a lot more festive than the previous Pacquiao motorcades.

Meantime, Pacquiao said he is also open to brokering peace in Mindanao, which has been battered by a protracted “war” that has killed scores and displaced millions of people.

Pacquiao, who has managed to unite the entire nation every time he goes into the ring, said he would always support any effort to achieve peace not only in Mindanao, but in the whole country.

Pacquiao was reacting to a proposal of a group advocating lasting peace in Mindanao to include him in the peace negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The People’s Coalition for Peace believes Pacquiao, who hails from General Santos City, should now move to “a new level” outside the ring – as broker for peace to end the long-standing armed conflict in Mindanao.

“I have no problem with that. I am open to help and give my support to the achievement of peace for our country,” said Pacquiao.

He then appealed to both the military and MILF to keep their cool and focus on finding a peaceful solution to the problem.

Fighting in the southern part of the Philippines has resumed since the collapse of the latest round of peace talks, specifically due to the failure of a draft deal on ancestral domain between the GRP and MILF peace panels four months ago.

written by Sir JCM \\ tags: Man of the Year, Manny Pacquiao