ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Boxing devider Pacquiao, Poirier join forces to help homeless Ugandan folks

Pacquiao, Poirier join forces to help homeless Ugandan folks

Published Apr 18, 2021 03:56 pm
UFC lightweight star Dustin Poirier (left) and Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao (right) have joined forces to donate in Justin Wren's Fight for the Forgotten initiative for the homeless Batwa Pygmies in Uganda. (Photos from Manny Pacquiao's Instagram, AFP, and Fight for the Forgotten)

Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and UFC lightweight star Dustin Poirier have joined forces to provide a helping hand for the Batwa Pygmies in Uganda.

Through their respective charity groups, the Manny Pacquiao Foundation and The Good Fight Foundation, Pacquiao and Poirier have pledged $50,000 each for the construction of 32 two-bedroom homes for the Pygmies on land brokered by the Fight for the Forgotten, ran by Justin Wren, an American humanitarian and philanthropist who also fights in the heavyweight division of Bellator MMA.

The land was also purchased with the help of The Good Fight Foundation's fundraising efforts two years ago.

"There’s a Swahili proverb that says, ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together,’” said Wren as quoted from his foundation's website.

"With Manny and Dustin walking alongside, we’re keeping all our promises to the Batwa, and beginning work with other Pygmy tribes as well. That’s what I call 'going far.'"

Wren, who immersed with the Pygmies for a year in 2011 and was given the name "Eféosa," which means "The Man Who Loves Us," is on a mission to keep the promise he made by providing them basic needs such as homes, food, healthcare, among others.

The 33-year-old MMA fighter hopes to maximize the 43 acres of land (approximately 17.4 hectares) by converting it into a community with farming, leadership and agricultural training, a water tower, a medical clinic and pharmacy, a toilet facility with bathing and handwashing stations, and a soccer field, where children can play together along with neighboring tribes.

Pacquiao, for his part, expressed glee for the opportunity to be part of the Fight for the Forgotten project.

"I have had a strong desire to touch more people in need, in more countries, in more ways," said Pacquiao, also a senator in the Philippines.

READ: Pacquiao dedicates PSA award to COVID-19 frontliners

Poirier echoed Pacquiao's sentiments and said that it was a "dream come true" to be part of an initiative with the same cause such as food security and healthcare. (Carlo Anolin)

Related Tags

Dustin Poirier Justin Wren Fight for the Forgotten Manny Pacquiao
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.