THE MISS UNIVERSE SAGA – THE PHILIPPINE EXPERIENCE (SERIES 4 OF 5)

2001 – 2010 THE YEARS OF STRUGGLE

by Rolando Rafael

THE CEREBRAL CHOICES: The most common denominator of this period is that majority of choices are cerebral candidates. This can be seen in 2001 (Andam), 2002 (Agustin), 2005 (Cabrera), 2006 (Ramos), 2007 (Licaros) and 2009 (Manalo). Among these winners of the Bb. Pilipinas Universe title, 3 are from UP (Andam, Ramos and Licaros), 1 from University of Asia and Pacific (Cabrera), 1 from AMA Computer University (Agustin) and 1 from Assumption College (Manalo). These candidates are known to be the intelligent types and that their selection was practically based from the experience that we almost made it in 1999 and that we lost because our candidate bombed out in the question and answer portion.

THE VENEZUELAN EXPERIMENT: Also during this decade, after the debacle in 2000 where our candidate was not sent to any training program because she was said to be the perfect candidate. We have to lick our wounds as we realize that we have gone full circle. Our winner in 2001 was sent to Venezuela but with less encouraging results. So in 2002, there was a sudden turnaround and another experiment was hatched – the Colombian experiment.

THE COLOMBIAN EXPERIMENT:  There seem to be a big question when the Philippine franchise holder for Miss Universe shifted her gears and took her winners for Colombian training only after 2 tries. First it was Mirriam Quiambao who almost made it and second was Zorayda Ruth Andam who was only triumphant as a first runner-up in the National Costume category. After Zorayda, succeeding candidates were sent to Colombia (Karen, Carla, Maricar, Giona, Lia, Anna Teresa, Jennifer and Pamela) for training. There were questions asked? Why Colombia? Why not pursue Venezuela instead? Reasons like, Venezuelan training is very expensive and that Filipina winners are not ready for the surgical enhancement programs of Venezuela. Although eventually, Venezuela stopped training foreign girls when Amelia Vega, Miss Dominican Republic who trained under Osmel Souza won Miss Universe in 2003. Then why Colombia? Colombia has not produced a winner for so long and that their golden period was not 1992-1994 did not produce a winner. While Venezuela was churning out runner-ups and title holders and is competing with the United States in terms of the number of winners. What was the common denominator for Karen, Carla, Maricar, Giona, Lia and Anna Teresa as a result of their Colombian preparation? They were cooked! Karen was cooked just enough. Carla was neither here nor there. Maricar lost her radiance and zest. Giona looked like she’s in a daze and had always a bad hair day. Lia was practically “mulattized” (pardon the term – it was derived from the word mulatto!). This period was labeled by a blogger (Bragitto) as TRIPLE C – Colombia, Cumbia and Cubao. Colombia where the training was held and Alfredo Barraza helped in the training and dressing the girls. It is alleged that he dresses the girls with poorly designed and made gowns and styles them very badly so that the Colombian candidates will shine over our candidates. Cumbia refers to those gowns and dresses worn by the candidates from the dress boutique of the Aranetas where there is nothing fashionable about it and lastly Cubao refers to BPCI and Madam Stella Araneta and her staff who are said to be caught in a time warp.  Pamela was again sent to Colombia but this time, there was no “mulattization” done. She was said to have undergone some slimming sessions and pasarela training. And again, the dreadful 3 C’s were very apparent and pageant fans were roaring when they saw her in an uninspired gift wrapper concept gown.

THE RIGHT BUT CONTROVERSIAL CHOICE: The year 2010 selected Maria Venus Raj, a Filipino-Indian beauty who was disqualified after discrepancies in her public pronouncements and what was written her birth certificate surfaced. It was the very first time the “pageantlandia” went up in arms and gave her a resounding support and thus, the first time the organization was nudged from their earlier decision. Venus was not sent to Colombia. A local team trained her.  Venus Raj went on to charm the people in Las Vegas even getting some comments from Osmel Souza of Venezuela that the Philippines sent a strong girl this time. The pageant fans went gaga over this girl most especially when she was chosen to be in the Top 5. After her debacle however in the question and answer portion, she was again back into the bashing board but Venus practically closed the decade with hope and more hope and probably more changes.  

PHILIPPINE SECTION: THE DREAM

By Dominador Agbayani

On April 15, 2012, a new set of queens will be crowned as Binibining Pilipinas 2012 to represent us in the Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Tourism Queen International Beauty pageants. Beauty pageants divide pageant enthusiasts as they exchange brickbats when fighting for their queens. On the other hand, they also unite the people because they eventually root for the country’s representative as it becomes a source of pride for them most especially if they performed credibly in their international outing.

Years and years ago, the Filipina woman of the “kayumangging kaligatan” fame, once tagged as an “indio” by the Spanish conquistadores started to get out of the shackles of colonial labeling by being the Queen of the Carnival. The reference to the Dalagang Pilipina fame is but a rendition of how beautiful the Filipina is. The triumph of a small girl in the Miss Universe Pageant in 1969, Miss Gloria Diaz came as a great beacon light of hope to many young Filipinas who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. Why such an injustice? It is because the Filipina had been tagged as the prostitute in the Orient. They had been conjured images of mail order brides. They had been nothing but second rate copy cats. The victory in 1969 came as a joyous daybreak to once catapult to the arena that the Filipino woman is not only that of beauty, exoticism but brains and wit to that effect.

Four years later, another Filipina showed grace and élan in the country where mythology of the Gods and Goddesses started. Margarita Moran unwittingly snatched the crown from would be pretenders because of her royalty demeanor. Such act and class labeled the Filipina as one with “maharlika” (royal) bearing.

Years thereafter, the Filipina was still caught in the quagmire of vicious labeling. In the same vein, our beauty queens were trounced year after year in the pageant arena. Sometime in 1999, Mirriam Quiambao almost did it retouched with the Venezuelan formula. Thereafter, it was a lull and the seeming endlessness of the search for the right formula to win the crown never materialized. Even the Colombian training that went after Zorayda Ruth Andam failed to resuscitate the death throes of our aim to get the universal crown once again. Many people criticized the Colombian connection since that country never had the ability to make their bridesmaid performances realized into the eventual bride scene. The Philippine organizers were criticized further for sticking to an old formula when the criteria for beauty in the universal landscape are changing rapidly. And the Philippines is so resistant to change and firmly adhering with tradition and conservativeness.

The recent placement of Maria Venus Raj in 2010 and Shamcey Supsup in 2011 created new hopes for the Miss Universe hopefuls. As they say, Miss Universe is the pageant. And it is everyone’s gold standard for what a beauty pageant is. Pageant fanatics say that there is a certain prototype that the Miss Universe looks for. But look at Venus Raj. She had an unconventional beauty. On the same vein Shamcey had the standard beauty that was improved after she won. It is obvious that today, the Philippine organization in this case the Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Inc. had just accidentally stumbled on what the international pageant is looking for its queen. This is no time to rest on our laurels because for one, we did not win the crown. We just placed in the Top 5 and this is not enough to put us into tranquility. Now it is the time to rise from mediocrity. Now it is the time to lift the national pride through the beauty of the Filipina.

It would be fatal for the BPCI to overlook the urgency of the situation. The pageant circle is hungry for a win. The candidates are presently in a whirlwind of activities and are trying their best to show their best wares. Some did prepare long time ago. Some were only thrust into the pageant spotlight. Some are doing their lessons. But in the end, the organization will choose its winners.

There is this dream that I had. I saw that for the 2012 edition of the Binibining Pilipinas Beauty Pageant, rightful candidates were chosen based on their beauty, charm, proportioned bodies and their ability to project the totality of the New Filipina. I dreamt that the chosen ones are the girls that showed the epitome of grace, dignity and discipline. And I dreamt further that the girl who will win is an embodiment of the greater ideals of the Filipino people.

As we walk further, there those that may not be satisfied with the choices. We can never be satisfied. There would be more wants to be satisfied. Yes, we can never be. Even if we won the crown this year, we will yearn for more victories. We will yearn for more accolades. But in the end of the day, we must reminisce and see for ourselves where have we been so that we can chart our path again in response to the challenge of the changing times of the beauty landscape.

I wish therefore that the Beauty Pageant for 2012 will not only maintain the status quo. I wish that the pageant would look out of the box and see for them that there is a changing world out there and that we should adapt to that change that faces us. We may be left out again if we do not see the wisdom of what had happened in the two previous competitions.

That is my dream and I wished that it be granted.