MISS Universe El Salvador has finally spoken up about the art card mix-up announcing the Top 5 delegates during the finals night of the 72nd Miss Universe pageant.
The graphic in question showed that Filipina beauty queen Michelle Dee was among the candidates in the Top 5 of the competition, although the pageant’s hosts did not announce the Philippines on stage. The Top 5 finalists who were called during the live broadcast were Australia, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Thailand and Colombia.
The erring post was taken down and replaced with a new art card that had Thailand on the list.
In an Instagram post, the organization, which hosted this year’s competition, apologized for mixing the names of the two finalists in the art card.
It explained that organizers were in a rush to upload the post during the coronation night’s live broadcast on November 18 in El Salvador, which was why they “accidentally mixed up” the two finalists.
“This was a simple error of moving too fast – we heard the same results live at the same time that you all did, no special access over here!” it said.
It added, “We’re sorry to both finalists.”
Dee reacted to this through her Instagram broadcast channel today, November 23 (Manila time).
“There should be no room for error but the reality is that we live in an imperfect world,” she said.
“My request is not just to be respectful to the delegates but to the supporters that are so passionate about this platform as well,” she stressed.
Although the art card was deleted immediately, some netizens were able to take a screenshot of the post that went viral. Many Filipinos were furious about the mix-up and demanded an explanation from the organization.
One social media user even called the attention of Miss Universe 2016 Iris Mittenaere, who was among the Miss Universe 2023 judges, to ask about Miss Universe El Salvador’s deleted post.
But the beauty queen said that she did not know anything about it.
“As judges, everything was fair and legal. But to be honest Michelle was in my top 5,” said Mittenaere, as she commended the looks that the Filipina beauty queen served in the global competition.
“She didn’t do any mistakes, so the Philippines should be very proud of her,” she added.
Dee, who is a staunch advocate for autism awareness, finished in the Top 10 of the pageant, after she flaunted her Whang-Od-inspired cutout dress during the evening gown segment.
Nicaragua’s Sheynnis Palacios was crowned the new Miss Universe 2023, succeeding USA’s R’Bonney Gabriel. Palacios made history by winning her country’s Miss Universe title.
Dee’s early exit in TV guesting
The now-deleted Top 5 graphic was not the only thing that created a buzz online in connection to the recent Miss Universe 2023 pageant.
The Miss Universe Philippines (MUPH) organization released a statement on Tuesday, clarifying a viral video that showed Dee “being escorted from a line-up” with other Miss Universe delegates during a television guesting in Mexico City.
Some netizens expressed concern over the alleged mistreatment of the 28-year-old Filipina beauty queen.
In a statement, the MUPH explained that Dee left the set because she was not feeling well due to her back-to-back schedule in the past weeks.
“Upon seeing her condition, the MUPH team decided that it was best for her to go back to the hotel to get some rest,” it said.
“Please wish that she gets well soon,” it added.
In her IG broadcast channel, Dee said that she went back to her hotel because she couldn’t “afford to get even more sick before heading back home.”
“Your girl dora is okay. No need to worry. All love,” she assured her fans.
