Bakla Ako, May Reklamo?

Like many of you out there, I have been disappointed in the way our local pageants have been run. We used to be a powerhouse in the international pageant scene but lately, we have been experiencing a dry spell. What has been happening? I know there are many beautiful and smart Filipina women out there, but why don’t they ever end up in local beauty contests?

After watching clips from YouTube of the question and answer portion of the recently concluded Binibining Pilipinas 2008, I got even more disappointed than I ever was. The finalists gave me a very difficult time handling my emotions. It is quite hard to alternate between laughter, shock, disappointment, anger, and wrath. If we want our beauty pageants respected and our contestants given more credit than they deserve, then we have to start thinking about how our beauty contests are run.

Let’s take the Bb. Pilipinas 2008 10 finalists for example. How in the world did some of those girls end up in the finals? It is an undeniable fact that physical beauty is a major factor that is being considered in pageants. But this year’s Binibining Pilipinas seemed like it was the only factor taken into consideration. How do we expect our ladies to bag the titles in international competitions like Miss Universe and Miss World if they are beautiful and dumb at the same time?

Okay, so that was an unfair statement. But I don’t care. We need to take a look at the selection of the contestants. So here are my suggested criteria that must be used in the selection process:

• Beauty. I noticed that over the last few years, the winners of our major titles had one particular look. I’m not saying that having the same facial structure as Abigail Arenas, Miriam Quiambao, Nina Ricci Alagao (and others who have come before and after them), is not beautiful. But I couldn’t help but notice the similarities in the jaw line of these women.Is this our signature Filipina look? I’m not an expert in beauty pageants and I don’t know what formulas work in the international scene, but why do our beauty pageant winners have that same look? Is this the only look that represent the beauty of Filipinas?

• The Smarts. We don’t need to get contestants who are extremely intelligent and have backgrounds in rocket science and quantum physics. There is a difference between being intelligent and being smart.If you analyze the questions being asked in beauty pageants, you would find out that these questions do not require one to pick your brains for 48 years just to come up with a good answer. Some contestants, in efforts of impressing the judges and the audience, go to extreme lengths of overthinking that they commit verbal diarrhea. A simple, truthful, and heartfelt answer is the only thing they need. A little wit is also helpful.

• Good Command of the Language. This does not necessarily have to be the English language. We have beautiful women who can speak their minds about anything under the sun – some in English, some in Filipino. We also need to educate these contestants that just because they can’t speak good English it means they’re dumb. Why don’t they express themselves in Filipino (or whatever their vernacular is)? And if they don’t understand the question completely, why are they too afraid to have the question rephrased?If they win in local pageants by answering in Filipino or Cebuano or Pangasinse, then why not let them use those languages in answering Q&A portions of international competitions? Why can’t we send an interpreter like many other contestants from other countries do?

  Is it because we are too proud to admit to the world that even if we claim to be an English-speaking country, not all of us speak the language well? I know that many of you will say that we are one of the best speakers of English in the whole world, and I won’t debate with you on that. However, not all of us speak good English. Sure we can speak it, but good English is a totally different thing altogether.

  This also is an issue that has to be addressed by the academe and the government. If we set aside more budget for education; if we prioritize education over debt-servicing and military funding; and if our politicos stop pocketing our hard-earned tax money; then in the long run, we would be able to justify our claims of being the best non-native speakers of English. Too idealistic I know, but that’s just me.

• Confidence. What’s the use of being too beautiful with one does not have the ability to have grace under pressure.  I mean come on, it’s not like being asked a question, to which you can’t think of an answer in an instant, will end your life. We have to coach our contestants INDIVIDUALLY and not just do seminars or lectures to them as a group.

These are just some of the things I have thought of. There are many other things that I can think of but I think these are of utmost importance.

Also, I do not know if there’s a truth to rumors that have been going around the pageant circles that there is some sort of politicking going on in these competitions, but if there are I hope they put a stop to it.

Another thing that I would suggest is to choose the judges wisely.  We have to have judges who are experts in this field.  We should avoid getting judges by virtue of their company’s sponsorship to the event or the connections they have with the organizers and the official television station. We have to have judges who know what works and what doesn’t.  This, after all, is still a competition.

If we want to debunk the idea that beauty pageants are venues to exploit women and if we are really bent on bagging international beauty titles, then we have to rethink and review how our beauty pageants are run. Because if we don’t, then I daresay that we are doing an injustice to the beauty of the Filipina.