Pacquiao foe can’t afford to do a CJ Corona

IS A left hook in boxing similar to a left-handed testimony in a trial court?

If so, can there be a comparison between the Senate impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona and boxing superhero Manny Pacquiao’s forthcoming world title defense?

It’s both odd and not very amusing, but this was bound to be asked out there in our chaotic, lawless streets where there has been nearly equal interest in the twin tests of character and courage.

Who between Pacquiao and challenger Timothy Bradley, to be judged by the highest standards, looked and sounded as though he were doing a Corona in the run-up to the June 9 showdown in Las Vegas?

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Please don’t look at the Pacman, who hardly spoke and also refused to beat his breast to advertise his self-worth.

Pacquiao, who need not promote his very visible courage and greatness, in fact ended up displaying deep humility when he apologized for the misguided anti-gay statement wrongly attributed to him.

Now, regarding the unbeaten Mr. Bradley, it definitely was not in his original agenda to trumpet his self-presumed nobility beyond belief.

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Blame it on the promoters if Bradley had already gone out of bounds trying to sell his equipment and ability.

Even before he could step on the official weighing scales to challenge the eight-division world crown winner, Bradley had started sounding as though he ruled the division he will be crashing again.

Well, Bradley definitely did not have the time, not to mention the appetite, to watch Corona’s testimony before the Senate impeachment court.

Unfortunately, it was Corona who first appeared as though he was doing a Bradley when the Chief Justice started crying, “I have no fear,” once he was challenged to testify.

Corona also swore majestically that he had nothing to hide, thereby adding he definitely knew his law.

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Then came the moment of truth: What transpired in the Senate impeachment hearing last Tuesday clearly showed what false courage and unmasked greed were all about.

The Chief Justice was a full-fledged anomaly when he balked and stepped out at the height of his testimony. In bullfighting, that was as foul and unforgivable as when a matador, the epitome of courage, turns his back on the bull.

As expected, the fearless Corona returned to the trial site, straight from the hospital where he was rushed after allegedly suffering a hypoglycemic attack.

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In his succeeding apology to the Senate court, Corona admitted he got disoriented, if not totally lost, with still two pages left in his testimony.

At least, Corona was honest enough to accept that what had caused him to cower and lose hold of himself during his testimony was the nervousness and immeasurable fear he experienced on the eve of his Senate appearance while preparing his testimony.

He however failed to explain his numbing fear of truth.

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(OUTCRY: Says former North Cotabato governor Manny Piñol: “The reasoning that says CJ Corona’s failure to include millions in dollar and peso deposits in his SALN was not enough reason to convict him is lunatic logic, in the face of the fate of that lowly Supreme Court employee who was dismissed for failing to include ownership of a market stall in her SALN.”)