BEAUTY queen maker John dela Vega got emotional as he vowed to give girls the chance to wear the Philippine sash in international pageants.
“You can bash and criticize for all you want but you can never stop me! As long as there are people who believe in me, I will continue to do this to give these girls a chance to be on the international scene and wear the Philippine sash,” said Dela Vega during preliminary competition for Jewel of the Philippines 2017 pageant held at Madison 101 Hotel in Quezon City last Monday night.
Dela Vega said that he created the Jewel of the Philippines pageant to give girls the opportunity to achieve their dreams.
“These girls would go home crying simply because they did not meet the standards of some beauty pageants. So I told myself once I will have the opportunity, if get the help of the people I trust, I will give these girls the chance to achieve their dreams. Beauty pageant is what simply giving these girls the chance to compete,” he said.
Dela Vega also lambasted people who see his girls as less competitive and not worthy of crowns.
“This is not the biggest pageant actually and we are not trying to be one. In God’s time, hopefully. I also received some bashing and comments saying that there are too many pageants and having less competent girls. You crown girls who are less worthy. So I said ‘why not?’ Who are you to tell that these girls are less competitive or less worthy to wear the Philippine sash?” he said.
Dela Vega advised girls who wanted to pursue their dreams of becoming an international beauty queen. “You don’t have to force things. If it’s yours, it’s yours. Work hard. But what matters most is cease the moment because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to wear the Philippine sash.”
The Jewel of the Philippines beauty contest, he added, is being re-branded this year into a pageant that advocates the promotion of Philippine culture and the arts through education.
The winners will compete in pageants abroad namely Miss United Continents, Miss Tourism World, Miss ASEAN, and Miss Globe International.
The grand coronation of Jewel of the Philippines 2017 will be held at the UP GT-Toyota Asian Cultural Center on Katipunan Avenue in Diliman, Quezon City on Oct. 7.
