Paeng: 'PBA Partylist used me without consent'

Multiple Guinness world record-holder Paeng Nepomuceno is livid that a purported sports partylist used his likeness and made it appear that he is endorsing them for the May elections.

Nepomuceno, winner of four bowling World Cups, was contacted by a late-night sports talk show aiming to interview current and former athletes running in the polls. Nepomuceno denied throwing his hat into the political ring.

 “No, I am not running for any position,” the left-handed champion emphatically claimed in a text message to The STAR. “PBA Partylist used my name and picture without my authorization.”

Paeng took exception to a full-page ad that appeared in the March-April issue of Badminton Xtreme Philippines magazine. The top half of the ad features photos of Pacquiao and the partylist’s motherhood statements. The bottom half was composed of photos of a dozen Filipino sporting greats, including Nepomuceno, WBO welterweight champion Pacquiao, billiards champion Efren Reyes, former taekwondo Olympian Monsour del Rosario and retired Philippine Basketball Association players Bong Alvarez and Cris Bolado, among others. The photos appeared under the heading “Top Athletes Join Forces for PBA Partylist”.

Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta, a partylist supposedly chaired by Pacquiao, first attempted to place candidates in congress in the last election, but was unsuccessful because they were organized late. This time around, after several upheavals in the last eight months or so, they are attempting to do so again. The Philippine Basketball Association is not connected with PBA Partylist in any way.

“Even their nominee is not an athlete,” adds Nepomuceno, who endorses a line of health products. “

When contacted by The STAR about the matter, PBA Partylist’s second nominee and former Manila councilor Miles Roces claimed he had no knowledge of the advertisement.

“I don’t know of any image of his that we used although we would love for him to be part of PBA,” Roces texted The STAR.

According to COMELEC spokesman James Jimenez, Nepomuceno and any other persons who feel misrepresented by any candidate in the coming elections may choose to file a case against whoever they feel has used their names or likenesses inappropriately.

“He may also take it up with the Adboard (Advertising Board of the Philippines), since this falls under truth in advertising,” Jimenez clarified. “That’s another process that he can follow.”

“I want to tell them off for using me without my permission,” the normally soft-spoken Nepomuceno said.

Roces said he would look into the ad. The magazine in question is published by badminton athletes Kennie and Kennevic Asuncion, who he says are members of the partylist.

Whatever comes out of this case, it is doubtful that the ad was published without the party’s knowledge. This means either of two things: the people running the partylist’s campaign do not know who is connected with them and who is not, or ran the ad hoping nobody would complain. Either way, it shows a lack of disrespect for the very sector they claim to represent. Nepomuceno, now one of the top coaches in the world for the United States Bowling Congress (USBC), was noticeably bothered that such a reckless use of his credibility would be perpetrated, more so by people claiming to represent the rights of Filipino athletes.

The question now is where else Paeng’s likeness has been used, and if any other well-known Filipinos athletes are unknowingly being misrepresented, either consciously or due to some form of incompetence on the part of the Partylist. When PBA Partylist started out in the last campaign, retired PBA All-Star Jerry Codinera and former PBA player and team manager Orly Castelo were involved. Now, no sports personality outside of Pacquiao (who is actually running for his own congressional seat in Sarangani province) is even running for the partylist.

Will anyone else step forward to complain?