MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines' bet to the Miss Universe pageant Maxine Medina was the first up in the competition's critical question-and-answer round, and here's a look at what she said.
An interpreter asked Maxine the question in Filipino, but she answered in English.
Question: What is the most significant change you've seen in the world in the last 10 years?
Maxine's answer: The last 10 years of being here in the world is that I saw all the people being in one event like this in Miss Universe, and it's something big to us that we are one, as one nation, we are all together.
The other candidates also faced tough questions related to world and current events. There were questions about the presidency of Donald Trump, the prevalence of violence in society, and the worldwide refugee crisis.
After the QnA round, the top 3 were announced – Miss Colombia, Miss France, and Miss Haiti – sealing Maxine's top 6 finish.
The questions at Miss Universe have in recent years touched on political and social issues. In 2015, Pia Wurtzbach answered a question about the US reopening military bases in the Philippines. – Rappler.com