Miss Philippines Earth queens susubukang makasungkit ng korona sa Bb. Pilipinas pageant

Mula Miss Philippines Earth pageant, tumawid sa Bb. Pilipinas sina (mula kaliwa) Sofia Lopez Galve, Kiaragiel Gregorio, at Gianna Llanes./ARMIN P. ADINA

MARAMING pamilyar na mukha sa hanay ng mga kalahok sa Binibining Pilipinas pageant ngayong taon, at kabilang sa mga “titulada” ang mga naging “elemental queens” ng Miss Philippines Earth na sina Kiaragiel Gregorio, Gianna Llanes, at Sophia Lopez Galve.

Si Galve ang pinakahuling nakoronahan sa tatlo, hinirang bilang Miss Philippines Ecotourism sa isang virtual pageant noong 2021. Sumali naman si Llanes noong 2020, sa isang online contest din, at nasungkit ang korona bilang Miss Philippines Water.

Samantala, pitong taon ang hinintay ni Gregorio bago muling tumuntong sa pambansang entablado. Itinanghal siya bilang Miss Philippines Air noong 2016 nang napunta ang pinakamataas na korona kay Imelda Schweighart na nanggaling naman ng Bb. Pilipinas.

“The reason why I’m back [is] because I want to share my new story, the new Kiaragiel Gregorio. I’ve had time to reflect on the transformative differences that the previous queens that have come before us have done through the help of the Bb. Pilipinas organization. And I hope to achieve the same thing,” sinabi ni Gregorio sa Inquirer sa isang panayam nang pumasyal ang mga kandidata sa Art in Island multimedia museum sa Quezon City noong Peb. 28.

“Right now I’m advocating for migrant workers’ rights. Because while I was in the [United Kingdom], I was studying law, during my first legal role, I’ve had the chance to work with organizations in the UK which aims specifically to help victims of modern slavery from the Philippines. That’s something that I wish Bb. Pilipinas Charities Inc. could help me with, should I be fortunate enough to win a crown,” pagpapatuloy pa ni Gregorio, na kumakatawan sa Cabanatuan City.

Sinabi naman ni Llanes na mula Palayan City na nais niyang isulong ang “body positivity among young women,” na paksa ng thesis niya sa Ateneo de Manila University. “It’s something that I have been fighting for for a very long time,” aniya.

“I’ve really been working with the local government unit of Palayan City to provide seminars, workshops for young women there when it comes to public speaking, expressing their thoughts, or even getting into occupations that are male dominated…I know that Bb. Pilipinas has broken so many barriers throughout the years, and has accepted any type of woman. And I want to be a representation of a different type of woman,” pagpapatuloy pa niya.

Ayon naman kay Galve, na kumakatawan sa lalawigan ng Rizal, “in my years of studying about the environment, I noticed that it’s not an isolated issue. The environment is something that is very much in touch with our socio-political issues. And with this I wanted a more holistic approach, and I believe that Bb. Pilipinas is a bigger platform that I can use to voice my socio-political and environmental advocacies. And I believe I am in the right place at Bb Pilipinas.”

Kasali ang tatlo sa 40 kandidatang nagtatagisan sa 2023 Bb. Pilipinas pageant. Itatanghal ang coronation show sa Smart Araneta Coliseum sa Araneta City sa Quezon City, posibleng sa Mayo. Hindi pa sinasabi ng organisasyon kung ilang korona ang igagawad ngayong taon.