Choosing the best
FORGET about host Steve Harvey's mistake yesterday; the correct queen was crowned some two minutes after, anyway. And we could not criticize almost all of the international news outfits for focusing on Harvey's announcing Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez as Miss Universe before correcting himself by apologizing to the shocked audience in Las Vegas and the millions of viewers worldwide that he called the wrong winner. It is not often that a mistake is made in a major beauty pageant.
So the Philippines' Pia Wurtzbach is this year's Miss Universe. For the first time since Margie Moran was crowned Miss Universe in 1973, Binibining Pilipinas Charities Inc. (BPCI) finally succeeded. After decades of misses and in the past few years near-hits (think Miriam Quiambao and the other Filipino bets that landed in the top 5 of the competition), it finally chose a Pinay that not only stood out on the world stage because of her beauty but more so because she didn't cower in the limelight.
Winning the Miss Universe pageant, as in any other international competition, be they for beauty, music or sports, always depends on how local organizers choose their representatives abroad. Luck often plays a part but as they say, luck favors the prepared. “Luck,” as Seneca said, “is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” For BCPI, preparation start by choosing the best bet.
The philosophy also applies to politics. Miss Universe is held annually but presidential elections, under the current setup, are only held every six years. In this sense, voters should be more careful in choosing the candidate they want to bring this country to greater heights. But it has been up and down since we became independent in 1946. And the ups and downs were partly because of the kind of candidates we voted into office at a certain period in our history.
BPCI has been on a roll the past few years, which only meant that it had hit on the right formula in choosing the Philippines' bet for Miss Universe and that it was only a matter of time that it would hit the jackpot. On the other hand, after the administration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, we hope that voters have finally learned their lesson and entrust the reins of this country after May 2016 to the presidential candidate that would not bring us to a disastrous rule again.