Miss PH Earth candidate Bellatrix Tan speaks up on #ElNiñoLaNiña answer

MANILA, Philippines – Bellatrix Tan, Zamboanga’s representative at Miss Philippines Earth 2016, spoke up about her viral response during the first question and answer segment on coronation night. (FULL LIST: Miss Philippines Earth 2016 winners)

On Saturday, June 11, the Top 12 of the pageant were asked to pick a hashtag out of a bowl and speak about the issue surrounding it. Bellatrix picked #ElNiñoLaNiña, and said: “El Niño, La Niña. El Niño is what we are facing right now. If we do simple things like planting trees, then we will not experience drought, right? So if we start now, we will achieve La Niña. Thank you.”

In an interview with DZMM on Monday, Bellatrix defended herself from the criticism she received following her answer.

“I know po talaga ‘yung El Niño and La Niña. Kasi alam ko po talaga na ‘yung El Niño, drought po, dry. Sa La Niña naman po, heavy rainfall. Kasi nung na-realize ko na mali pala ‘yung pag-deliver ko, ‘yung pag-answer ko, bigla pong nag-react na ako. Sinabi ko na nga po dun sa host na alam ko kung ano ang La Niña, heavy rainfall,” she said, adding that she does not know why she answered like that. 

(I really know what El Niño and La Niña are. I know that El Niño means drought, dry. La Niña, on the other hand, is heavy rainfall. When I realized that my delivery was wrong, the way I answered, I reacted right away. I told the host that I knew what La Niña was, heavy rainfall.)

If given a chance to fix her answer, Bellatrix said she would say: “El Niño and La Niña are both effects of climate change. If we don’t do our part, we will really experience drought and heavy rainfall. Act now so we can have a better future.”

The 20-year-old Communications graduate also gave a message to those who criticized her, saying they should try to join a national pageant so they’ll know how hard it is. She added that in such a situation, even simple questions can be difficult to answer.

At Miss Philippines Earth 2016, Miss Earth 2015 Angelia Ong crowned her successor, Puerto Princesa’s Imelda Schweighart, who will represent the country at Miss Earth 2016 later this year. – Rappler.com