Bangkok, 20 Nov (EFE).- After 20 days of activities in Thailand, the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) will name the winner of the current edition on Friday, an event marked by a series of controversies outside the beauty pageant itself.
Since the 120 candidates began arriving in Bangkok at the end of October, the pageant has been marred by a series of controversies that culminated this week in the resignation of jury members, legal threats, and fraud allegations in the famous competition that will conclude tomorrow.
The Dinner
On November 3, MUO published a statement confirming its differences with the Miss Grand International (MGI) organization, chaired by Thai Nawat Itsaragrisil and responsible for hosting the event in Bangkok.
In that first statement, MUO warned that it reserved the right to take legal action against MGI due to the promotion on social media of a "special dinner" with Nawat, who had called on the pageant's followers to vote to select the 10 misses who would attend this activity.
The Miss Universe team stated that this event was not authorized and that those votes would not influence the outcome of the competition, while Nawat insisted that it was part of the agreement with MUO.
The Casino
Nawat accused MUO of illegality by allying with a sponsor linked to online casinos, whose operations are illegal in Thailand.
In comments to EFE, the Thai said that MUO, without notifying them, displayed posters featuring the name of an online casino at the hotel where the candidates were staying, to which police officers went in search of those responsible.
In front of journalists, the police allegedly took a Miss Universe pageant worker to the station, although no further details are known at this time.
The Insult
Against this backdrop, Nawat was one of the most viral moments of the edition when he told the representative of Mexico, Fátima Bosch, to be quiet during an event that was broadcast live by MGI and unleashed a wave of criticism against the Thai, including statements from UN Women and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
The Mexican delegate demanded respect, and Nawat, who denied having insulted her despite the video of the moment, apologized repeatedly for what happened, including a theatrical tearful apology at a press conference.
The Resignations
Finally, two jury members announced their resignation this week: Franco-Lebanese pianist and composer Omar Harfouch threatened to take legal action against MUO for alleged crimes such as "fraud, abuse of power, corruption, deceit, breach of contract, conflict of interest, and moral and reputational damages".
Through Instagram, the musician announced his decision to resign from the eight-person panel, as this week "a secret vote was held to pre-select 30 contestants" who will be announced as qualifiers at the beginning of the gala final, a task that, according to him, fell to people who are not on the selection committee.
In response, MUO stated that no external group to the selection committee had been formed to evaluate the candidates or choose the finalists, but that a different panel of judges will study and award the best social projects promoted by the competitors without this impacting who will win.
Meanwhile, former French footballer and coach Claude Makélélé, who had been announced as one of the judges, simply said on his Instagram account that he will no longer attend Miss Universe 2025, without giving further explanations.
While MUO published photos of new judges, Harfush warned the jury that their participation in this pageant "could legally implicate them in an act of worldwide fraud".
