Chavit Singson has yet to ‘accept’ Miss Universe PH franchise – report

MANILA, Philippines – Has he or hasn’t he? 

Former Ilocos Sur governor Luis “Chavit” Singson seemingly backtracked after he confirmed in an interview published Sunday, January 13, that he now has the Philippine franchise for the Miss Universe pageant. 

In a message to the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Monday, Jaunary 14, Singson said the franchise was “offered” to him even before the 2018 pageant in Thailand but he “did not accept it yet because it might be an additional work load for my company.” 

In an interview with Philippine Star columnist Wilson Lee Flores published on January 13, Singson said: “True, the franchise is already with me, but it has not yet been announced. I think it shall be formally announced this January or February, when Catriona comes back again to the Philippines. ‘Binibining Pilipinas Universe’ will be replaced with ‘Miss Universe Philippines.’ Noon pa binibigay sa akin ‘yan (It was offered to me even then), because I’ve been helping them since 2016.”

Singson was asked about rumors that he was set to acquire the franchise from Binibining Pilipinas Charities Inc. (BPCI), which had held the franchise since 1964.

When asked how he got the Miss Universe franchise from the Aranetas, Singson told Star’s Flores: “I dealt with them for the hosting of the Miss Universe pageant here in the Philippines in 2016. Instead of talking to many companies before, they just talked to me and I then gave them a non-refundable deposit of $1 million. Who would disagree to that, non-refundable? I gained their trust. Before the signing in 2016, they even first asked me to pay $12 million.”

Singson’s publicist told Rappler they had no official statement over the real status of the franchise. 

Candidates for the Miss Universe pageant are selected through the local franchises. In the Philippines’ case, the representative is selected through the Binibining Pilipinas pageant, which is owned by BPCI. The Stella Araneta-run company also selects candidates for other international pageants.

Araneta had earlier insisted that the franchise was still under BPCI. “If some people say something else, let them talk about it,” she said. 

The Miss Universe Organization has yet to formally announce who will keep the Miss Universe Philippines franchise. – Rappler.com