Who US Pinoys blame for MJ’s Miss Universe loss

JERSEY CITY, NJ – Some kababayans are still proud of Philippine bet MJ Lastimosa’s Miss Universe performance.

“She’s still top 10, you know that’s still something,” Loren San Diego said. “I know she was an early favorite. Of course I’m a little sad she didn’t make it to top 5. But it’s ok.”

Beauty pageant enthusiast Ronn Reganit said with a body to die for, perfect runway skills and the brains, MJ was the Philippines’ ultimate bet.

“The spoiler of this whole competition was Miss Netherlands,” Reganit said. “She had the vavoom factor, which MJ had, but apparently the differentiation is on the gown.”

Reganit said although Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines wore gowns from the same Colombian designer Alfredo Barraza, Miss Colombia seemed to have gotten a better design.

“Conflict of interest, sad to say,” Reganit said. “You’re a Colombian designer for Miss Colombia, and you’re also the designer for Miss Philippines. That basically explains the conflict of interest.”

Binibing Pilipinas Founding Chairperson Stella Marquez-Araneta’s said there’s a reason why she doesn’t use Filipino designers.

“If I didn’t do it for several years, it’s because the designs that were given to us were not good enough for our candidates,” she told said. “That’s the reason I went abroad.

Reganit says the animosity between Marquez-Araneta and Filipino designers has its back story.

“Filipino designers, at one point in Binibining Pilipinas history, have walked out of a Binbining Pilipinas pageant two days before the coronation night and the candidates had no gown to wear,” Reganit said. “Madame Stella at that time had to beg on her knees for these designers, Filipino designers, not to ruin her show. And now moving forward she made a point — I’ll go in and make a non-Filipino designer to design for their candidates.”

Reganit says he is hoping that Marquez-Araneta will have a change of heart and a change of designer after this national costume uproar.