Nigerian lawyer, 28000 others, stand with Manny Pacquiao against LGBT “bullies”

Filipino boxer and politician Manny Pacquiao is at the receiving end of widespread backlash after suggesting homosexuals are “worse than animals”.

Nike terminated its endorsement deal with Pacquiao over the comments. The boxer later apologised but insisted he was simply stating the truth according to “God’s word, the Bible.”

Pacquiao’s comments is, however, not only being trailed by criticisms as thousands of people are now voicing their support for the boxer’s stance on LGBT.

One of them, a Nigerian lawyer, says the media is helping pro-gay people bully Pacquiao unnecessarily.

Ahmed Maiwada was national legal adviser to the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA). He made the comments after signing a petition to “stand with Manny Pacquiao against LGBT bullies” and sharing it on Facebook.

Over 28,000 people have signed the petition after it was launched on Friday.

The Maiwada’s position is no surprise as most Nigerians are against homosexuality. Nigerian lawmakers have even passed legislation criminalising gay marriage. They insist homosexuality is “unAfrican”.

The pro-Pacquiao petition reads in part…

Manny Pacquiao is getting pummelled by the anti-family mainstream media, and by the same LGBT-activist bullies who preach “tolerance,” but apparently cannot a tolerate a viewpoint that is different than their own.

The indisputable fact is that homosexual sexual acts come with a host of physical and psychological harms that stem from the misuse of the human body – from astronomically higher rates of STDs like HIV/AIDS and gonorrhoea, to anal cancer, breast cancer, drug and alcohol abuse, depression and suicide. It is certainly not “hateful” or “homophobic” to point this out, and there is no evidence that Pacquiao expressed this viewpoint out of hate. On the contrary, it is loving to speak the truth in charity, and to warn people away from a harmful lifestyle.

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Pacquiao has since responded with a muted but sincere apology for any hurt his statement had unintentionally caused, but did not retract his position.

“I’m sorry for hurting people by comparing homosexuals to animals. Please forgive me for those I’ve hurt. I still stand on my belief that I’m against same-sex marriage because of what the Bible says, but I’m not condemning LGBT. I love you all with the love of the Lord. God Bless you all and I’m praying for you,” he posted on Instagram on Tuesday.

But the damage done by western media was already accomplished.

WATCH: Here’s what Manny Pacquiao said about homosexuals