HILARY AT UST  TOWN HALL  MEETING:  OF  COURSE  PACQUIAO  WILL  WIN!

[PHOTO AT LEFT - US State Secretary Hillary Clinton waves to the crowd at the UST auditorium in Manila yesterday after attending a forum organized by TV network ABS-CBN. MANNY MARCELO]

MANILA, NOVEMBER 14, 2009 (STAR) US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton drew loud applause at a town hall meeting with students yesterday by giving the right answer to the most pressing question: Is Manny Pacquiao going to win this weekend?

The most popular Filipino champ will be back in the boxing ring in Las Vegas to take on Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico in a 145-pound fight that will be closely watched back home.

“Of course the Pacman’s going to win. I mean, is there any doubt?” Clinton said at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, where she entertained questions during the nationally televised forum with hundreds of students – an exclusive of TV network ABS-CBN.

Clinton said she’s aware that boxing and basketball are “pretty big” in the Philippines.

Every time Pacquiao steps into the ring, he brings his native Philippines to a virtual standstill.

Before a televised audience of 1,000 students packed into an amphitheatre, Clinton charmed them with talk of her family, basketball, boxing, The Beatles and other rock stars.

A Chicago native, Clinton also confessed that the Chicago Bulls were her favorites – until she moved to New York and started backing the Knicks, something she said was “kind of discouraging.”

“Now the Knicks are trying maybe to get LeBron James, now that would make it very exciting in New York. So I will watch that. I am not sure exactly what will happen,” Clinton said.

Her 90-year-old mother “really likes” Mick Jagger, she confided.

She also charmed her audience with self-deprecating humor.

When asked when the United States would have a female president, Clinton quipped: “I’m probably the last person you should ask, because I certainly tried.”

She praised the Philippines as a role model because it has had two female presidents – democracy icon Corazon Aquino in 1986 and President Arroyo.

“The Philippines is ahead of us. I really should ask you what is the secret of your success,” she said.

Clinton also answered questions from students and television anchors about poverty, global terrorism, the peace process in the south, repression in Myanmar, the Afghan war, human rights and other serious subjects.

Crowds of people dubbed “Hillary fans and fanatics” by Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo flocked to see Clinton during her various stops in her two-day visit, in a seemingly genuine outpouring of enthusiasm. When she announced her latest trip a week ago, Clinton said she wanted to “show solidarity” with the Philippines after recent storms and typhoons left more than 1,000 people dead and tens of thousands of others homeless.

On her first day, she visited suburban Malanday High School, where US helicopters just weeks ago rescued stranded students from roofs and subsequent US aid programs helped resupply the classrooms with books and other materials.

Classrooms bore large greetings such as “your presence is a Christmas gift to us” and “thank you for sharing your precious time with us.”

Waving Philippine and US flags as well as balloons, about 2,000 students standing on three levels of balconies erupted into a deafening roar of cheers when Clinton greeted them from the once-flooded courtyard.

“Mabuhay,” Clinton told them, using the Philippine word for welcome.

She said she was “very sorry” for their losses and that Washington would continue to help in their recovery.

On her way to and from the school, Clinton was greeted by thousands more people who crowded around the bumpy road or peered from their dilapidated homes. - AP