‘Mr. Universe’ gamely answers pageant questions in forum

Even “Mr. Universe” didn’t relish answering some of the Miss Universe pageant questions that may have unnerved and cost the crown for the top contenders.

Luis “Chavit” Singson, who was awarded the Mr. Universe sash for sponsoring the pageant in the Philippines, on Wednesday was grilled pageant-style during the Meet Inquirer Multimedia (MIM) forum.

During a game capping the hourlong forum, the former Ilocos Sur governor fielded three questions that were posed to the Top 6 Miss Universe candidates during the Jan. 30 coronation at SM Mall of Asia.

Maxine’s question

The first was the same question thrown at Miss Philippines Maxine Medina: “What is the most significant change you’ve seen in the world in the last 10 years?”

“This is difficult. That’s why I don’t join beauty contests,” the 75-year-old Singson quipped after some pause.

Then he blurted out: “Malaking pagbabago ’yung social media. Noong araw wala yan (Social media have brought big change. It wasn’t present before).”

Medina’s answer didn’t impress the panel of judges, including Miss Universe titlists Dayanara Torres and Sushmita Sen. Medina didn’t make the final cut for the Top 3.

Turning serious

Responding to the final question for the Top 3 title contenders—“Name something over the course of your life that you failed at, and tell us what you learned from that experience?”—Singson turned serious. He said he regretted not completing college.

“Knowledge is wealth. You will lose money but not knowledge,” he said, adding that “experience is still the best teacher.”

To the question for Miss Thailand Chalita Suansane, who made it to the Final 6 but not the Final 3—“Name a current or past world leader whom you admire and why?”—Singson seemed to have a ready answer.

“(Lee Kuan Yew) is a disciplinarian. We need discipline in this country. In short, we need a benevolent dictator,” he said.

He recalled meeting Lee when the Singaporean prime minister was already out of government. Lee died in 2015.

While Medina didn’t win the title, Singson said she gave a good performance, noting that even 2015 Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach had three attempts before finally winning a beauty title.

“That’s how it is in beauty contests, you also need some luck,” he said.

Miss France, 23-year-old dental student Iris Mittanaere, brought home the crown.

Looking back, Singson admitted that he had fun with the beauties.

During an earlier meeting with contestants, Miss British Virgin Islands Erika Creque mistook Singson for President Duterte, snapped a selfie with him, and posted their photo on Instagram.

“I was introduced as president of LCS group of companies and she thought President of the Philippines. She posted it immediately,” Singson said, chuckling.

Asked what qualities he shared with the President, Singson said Mr. Duterte was sincere and direct.