The Vice President of the Republic of the Philippines undoubtedly declined two VIP tickets for the 65th Miss Universe. Leni Robredo humbly declined the two VIP tickets that should have allowed her to watch the most prestigious international beauty pageant in the universe. She was offered by the Department of Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo, which was just days before the crowning event of Miss Universe. After the ticket was declined by her, the ticket was then offered to somebody else, which was also a public figure official of the Philippines.
After declining the ticket, Leni Robredo opted to continue her responsibilities as the second highest public official of the Philippines. This means that you will not see the presence or even the shadows of the vice president within the vicinity of SM Mall of Asia Complex that is located in Bay City district, Pasay City, Metro Manila. Since the proposal for declaring January 30, 2017, as a special holiday was declined, government officials are still obliged to report to their posts in their respective offices across the archipelago. However, there are several government agencies across the Philippines who became considerate enough to allow employees to watch the 54th Miss Universe at their offices, provided that their task has already been done.
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| Vice President Leni Robredo on the left declined to attend the 65th Miss Universe |
Despite from Leni Robredo's absence during the coronation event of the 65th Miss Universe, there were several personalities and officials who attended the event. Some of them were former president Joseph Ejercity Estrada, the current partner of President Rodrigo Duterte, Honeylet Avancena, and People's Champ Manny Pacquiao. All were satisfied after watching the Philippine's bet Maxine Medina to reach the top 6 round of Miss Universe. Several celebrities were also spotted inside the SM MOA Arena to support our very own Maxine Medina. Former beauty queens offered their support to watch the Philippine bet who successfully made it to the top 6. Watching the event is worth it even if the ticket prices were too pricey for a person to watch the coronation event of Miss Universe.
For business owners and tycoons, they were optimistic that they could host another edition of Miss Universe in the Philippines. Hosting the 65th edition of Miss Universe was believed to be responsible for spurting more tourism arrivals in the Philippines. When there is a surge in tourist arrivals during Miss Universe, investments that were spent will definitely gain a significant amount of revenues to the business owners. However, the Secretary of the Department of Tourism was skeptical about the plan to host Miss Universe for the succeeding year due to the huge responsibilities and the overwhelming duties that should be considered. Wanda Teo stressed that hosting a very large event takes a lot of time, energy, and money to accommodate tens of thousands of visitors in the country.
*READ: Filipino pageant fans are happy for Maxine Medina's top 6 finish at 65th Miss Universe
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Leni Robredo's video presentation
5 Reasons why Vice President Leni Robredo Declined to attend the 65th Miss Universe
1. Not in good terms with President Duterte: Since quitting her post as the head of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council of the Philippines (HUDCC), her relationship with President Duterte became sour. After quitting her post, she was already seldom invited to function events organized by the Duterte administration. Whenever there are important events that are initiated by the government, Leni prefers to prevent any uncomfortable situation, prompting her not to attend these special events.
2. Leni's affiliation with Liberal Party is a factor: During the Aquino administration, the Liberal Party is the largest political party in the Philippines. But since Rodrigo Duterte won the presidency on May 9, 2016, members of the Liberal Party transferred to PDP-Laban (Partido Demoktratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan). Since then, PDP-Laban is regarded as the new and the largest political party in the Philippines, challenging the Liberal Political party. Leni is mostly associated with the policies and advocacies of the Liberal Party, who helped her win the Vice-Presidential presidential election during the recent May polls.
*READ: Iris Mittenaere from France is the new Miss Universe
3. She might cause a conflict of interest with Gabriela: Before the coronation event of the 65th Miss Universe in SM MOA Arena, Gabriela warned that there will be a protest against the hosting of the pageant. Gabriela indicated that the hosting of the 65th Miss Universe beauty pageant was against feminism as the group is a strong advocate for women's rights. They believe that Miss Universe could exploit the rights of women in our society, which is why they want to protest against the Miss Universe Organization, Img/WME, and to the Duterte administration. However, it seems there were no protests during the coronation night due to tight security.
4. Believes she was not invited: Out of confusion, Leni Robredo thought that she was not invited to watch the coronation of the 65th Miss Universe in SM MOA Arena. However, Secretary Wanda Teo clarified that the tickets that should have been offered to her was just delayed and were only released days before the coronation night. By the time that Secretary Wanda Teo offered the ticket to her, she immediately refused to accept it and reiterated that she does not want to attend the coronation night of the event. There should have been two VIP tickets worth $1,000 or Php 50,000, each being offered to the vice president.
*READ: 5 Facts why Vice President Leni Robredo quits her cabinet post as HUDCC chairwoman
5. It is a regular working day: Since president Rodrigo Duterte refused to declare January 30, 2017, as a special non-working holiday, Leni Robredo opted to continue her regular routine as the vice president of the Philippines. As a working vice-president, prioritizing her duties and responsibilities are more important than attending an event that might cause a conflict in her recently scheduled activities. This is one major reason why she declined to accept the tickets because there are other important things that she should attend to, preventing another misunderstanding from the staff as well as from her constituents.
6. Leni does not want to cause tensions in SM MOA ARENA: Thinking that she will bump into President Rodrigo Duterte in SM MOA Arena, declining the offer is the best thing that she can do. Vice-President Leni Robredo is aware that people already knew about the misunderstandings between her and the president and also knew that there is a high volume of Duterte supporters elsewhere even inside the stage that might mob her. To prevent any tension or drama inside the SM MOA Arena, refusing the invitation is the best thing to do and move on by continuing her responsibility as the vice president.
*READ: Filipino pageant fans are happy for Maxine Medina's top 6 finish at 65th Miss Universe
