Explaining why Miss Universe judges resigned: Was she manipulated?

Someone call Sandra Bullock, because this is the case of the glamorous FBI agent. The Miss Universe pageant is reeling from scandal after two judges withdrew from the competition this week, with one claiming it was rigged. This comes after the competition director was fired earlier this month for reprimanding one of the contestants. The matter comes to a head days before the competition is scheduled to be held, in Bangkok, Thailand, on November 21.

The first to leave the competition was composer Omar Harfouche, who claimed that the competition was rigged. “I would like to express my profound bewilderment after I discovered, via social media, that an impromptu jury had been formed to select 30 finalists from among 136 participating countries, without the presence of any of the eight real jury members, including myself,” he wrote on his Instagram Story on November 18. Entertainment Weekly. “The results of this selection currently remain confidential.” In the follow-up post Same dayHarfouche said: “To this day, no one knows who the thirty were chosen, except for one person who holds the results, and he himself is affiliated with a national organization of a participating country, and this is a clear conflict of interest.”

Miss Universe responded to Harfouche’s grievances on November 18 Via Instagram By denying all his claims. “The Miss Universe Organization makes it very clear that no impromptu judging panel has been established, no outside group has been permitted to evaluate delegates or select finalists, and that all competition evaluations continue to follow established, transparent and moderated MUO protocols,” the Miss Universe Organization wrote. Harfouche was then banned from “using, displaying, referring to, or associating himself with any Miss Universe trademarks.”

With Harfouche’s departure up in the air, an additional Miss Universe judge departed on the same day. Former professional footballer Claude Makelele revealed via Instagram He will not attend the competition. “This was a difficult decision, because I hold Miss Universe in the highest regard,” he wrote in a completely different tone than Harfouche. “The platform represents empowerment, diversity and excellence – values ​​I have always stood for throughout my career. I sincerely apologize to the organisation, the contestants and all participants, and I hope I can contribute in the future under better circumstances.”

Miss Universe was already embroiled in controversy this month after the loud dismissal of pageant director Noat Itsaragrisil. The scandal began when Itzaragrecil publicly reprimanded Miss Mexico, Fatima Bosch, at a live-streamed event on November 4, according to the British Daily Mail. Entertainment Weekly. In the video, Itsaragrecil calls out Bush for allegedly not attending a requested photo shoot, claiming she was following the directions of the pageant director in Mexico, and calling her a “doll.” Bush tried to deny Itsaragrisel’s allegations, but he interrupted her, and she ended up walking off the set. She told him: “You don’t respect me as a woman.”

After the incident, Miss Universe took action. The organization’s president, Raul Rocha, said on November 4 that he had banned Itzaragrisil from participating in the competition. Rocha said he felt “extreme indignation towards Nawah because of the public attack he committed against Fatima Bush… whom he insulted, humiliated and showed a lack of respect for.” He added: “I will not allow the values ​​of respect and dignity of women to be violated.” Dear God, is it possible that someone can bring Miss Congeniality to this contest?