Miss World Philippines 2022 candidates on Sunday answered hot button topics, from vlogger's accreditation as media to unifying the public post-election, during the question and answer portion of the pageant.
Negros Occidental's Gwendolyne Fourniol was crowned Miss World Philippines 2022, the country's representative to the 71st Miss World pageant.
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Here's what they have to say:
Gwendolyne Fourniol (Miss World Philippines 2022)
How do we cope with an education deficit accumulated due to the pandemic?
As an advocate of education, I do agree that during the pandemic, we have suffered the most, but the children who have the lack access to education have suffered the greatest. Working hand in hand with ERDA Foundation to empower the marginalized Filipino, I believe by uniting benefactors and encouraging our children, and allowing them to go back to school especially during this pandemic will make this world a better place because education is the greatest weapon against poverty.
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Ashley Subijano Montenegro (Miss Eco Philippines 2022)
Should bloggers and vloggers be accredited as members of mainstream media?
I do believe so because they are voices for the things that they care about, for other people as well as those that they represent. Bloggers and vloggers do their best to provide people with information in all shapes, size, forms, and platforms. My mother personally is a vlogger and I know that she proudly advocates and shares all the things she’s passionate about. Anyone can be well educated on a subject if they’re passionate and dedicated and if people use credible sources, then absolutely.
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Ingrid Santamaria (Miss Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas 2022)
How do you think can we unite as a people under one flag after a very divisive election?
To be able to unite as a people, we need to remember that we are working toward one common goal and that common goal is to make our nation a better place, develop our nation, support our communities, and to grow our cultures and our heritage. No matter what our political beliefs are, no matter what our religion is, we should all remember to start with respect. We should respect each individual whether or not we agree with their sentiments and then we can be able to learn how to be united, how to work towards a common goal, and how to create a better world.
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Alison Black (Miss Supranational Philippines 2022)
If you were to be appointed as secretary of DOT what innovation will you implement to boost cultural tourism?
It would definitely be sustainable tourism. The Philippines is such a melting pot for different cultures, and we are the best tourist spot in the whole world, but because we are so popular, we are degrading the environment and we are losing touch of our culture. So if we can promote sustainable tourism by avoiding over-tourism and making sure that each Filipino gets to explore each and every corner of the Philippines then we can celebrate the Philippines while protecting it.
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Beatriz McLelland (Miss Eco Teen Philippines 2022)
Do you agree that we should tax the rich even more to help the country rebound from the pandemic?
Definitely, I think. Am I right, the rich? I think these are the people who are in businesses who have successful ones and I think they should be taxed as high as they can to help the people who are in need, especially through the pandemic. I think it’s really concerning for them, it should be concerning for them that they should contribute to the economy, to the people around them instead of just focusing on their own businesses and their own pleasure and interest, and so that I think that they should be taxed higher so that they could help their fellow citizens.
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Justine Beatrice Felizarta of Marikina City (Miss World Philippines Tourism 2022)
What can we learn from celebrity breakups that expose their private lives to the public?
We all have choices in this life and to be a celebrity is someone to be of power and to have power as someone who has authority but it doesn’t mean that they are not human. We should always respect people regardless of what they’re going through because you never know what they are going through with their private lives, and I think if we do this we’ll definitely become more collected together and respected for one another.
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Cassandra Chan of San Juan City (Miss World Philippines Charity 2022)
Should the people within the LGBTQ+ community have the need to come out of the closet, why or why not?
As someone who has many friends in the LGBTQIA+ community, I know their struggles because I’ve heard their stories. I respect that when they want to come out, it is their choice. I believe that as a straight cis woman, I should respect them, and give them love and kindness. That is what the LGBTQIA+ needs especially in this age. I want to empower them and embrace them with my love and that’s why I’m an exceptionally empowered Filipina.
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Maria Gigante
How is a bill seeking to grant a five-day mental wellness leave to workers essential for both employees and their employers?
A mental health illness is just the same as any illness, as you mentioned in our mental health talk a few days ago. I think it’s very important that as ambassadors of goodwill, as beauty queens, and perhaps as the next Miss World Philippines, we have to help spread awareness for the fact that mental illness is just like any illness and should be treated with just as much urgency. So yes, it is completely valid for us to now accept the fact that one can have a mental health leave. In fact, places all over the world have made room for more open and honest conversations for what it means to be more human. Like in Spain for example, we now have a leave for women who are on their periods. It is high time that we recognize that we are only human, and only then can we make a better world.
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Erika Kristensen
Do you think that we should decriminalize libel?
Yes, I definitely think that we should decriminalize libel because especially in our day and age, we don’t know if that person is actually saying something true or not. And I think that, you know, we should start embracing press freedom, and that of course includes libel because a threat to our press is of course a threat to our democracy, and how can we move forward if we do not embrace this? So yes, definitely, I think everybody should have the right and the freedom to say whatever they want, but I think that it should be with responsibility, and that I think we should decriminalize libel.
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