Owners initially cancelled 2016 edition of the pageant in Manila due to Duterte's tirades against US, Obama but later reconsidered

  MANILA – Now it can be told. The staging of the 65th Miss Universe in Manila was cancelled at first but the pageant's owners were prevailed upon to reconsider their decision to call off the event. Businessman-politician Luis "Chavit" Singson, who owns the LCS Group of Companies and a former governor of the northern Philippine province of Ilocos Sur, revealed in an Meet Inquirer Multimedia Forum yesterday that the hosting of Miss Universe by the Philippines took a political turn at one point. LCS Group of Companies was one of the pageant's sponsors in the Philippines. Singson said William Morris Endeavor-International Management Group (WME-IMG), owners of Miss Universe, decided in October last year to cancel the staging of the pageant in the Philippines following President Rodrigo Duterte's tirades against then US President Barack Obama and when Duterte started distancing himself from Washington. Duterte's criticisms hurt the owner of WME-IMG, who is a sibling of Obama's chief of staff. Because of Duterte's tirades, WME-IMG and the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) told Singson and Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo in a teleconference that the pageant in Manila has been cancelled. But Singson asked WME-IMG to reconsider since the country already paid US$12 million for the franchise and the contract on the hosting of the pageant by the Philippines was already signed. Singson said Teo told the WME-IMG and MUO that cancelling the pageant would be a breach of contract but the MUO said it was the pageant's owners that decided to cancel the pageant in the Philippines. He also said MUO president Paula Shugart told them that WME-IMG knows that Singson could sue for damages amounting to US$10 million aside from rembursement of the payment for the franchise. Singson said he wrote the MUO and WME-IMG to reconsider their decision to cancel the pageant in Manila because he will lose credibility as he already talked to a lot of corporations that would help finance the holding of Miss Universe in Manila. He also said Miss Universe would likewise lose credibility for cancelling the hosting contract. He said the WME-IMG and MUO reconsidered with the help of his Jewish friends who he asked to talk to the pageant owner. The head of WME-IMG is Jewish. But by the time the WME-IMG and MUO had decided to go on with the pageant in Manila, Singson said some of the sponsors in the Philippines already backed out because it was already too late since the pageant's ancillary events were going to start by the middle of January. Despite the problems and issues that came along with its staging in Manila, the 65th Miss Universe competition pushed through. The kick-off ceremony was held in December last year and pre-pageant activities began on January 15. The pageant was held at the Mall of Asia on January 30 where Iris Mittenaere of France beat 85 other candidates to become Miss Universe. Meanwhile, Singson revealed that he spent a total of US$15 million for the staging of Miss Universe. He also bought 30 new buses used in transporting the candidates and a yacht. Singson considers the money he poured into the pageant as an investment instead of a loss as he explained that "as long as tourists will start arriving in the country, it's a win for all of us. I'm very positive that it will be easy to recover the amount as long as there will be many tourists because I have transportation, an airline and a hotel."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