Herlene Budol draws flak for Miss Grand Philippines 2023 interview answers, apologizes for 'not being perfect'
Herlene Budol has apologized for "not being perfect" after receiving criticisms for her Q&A answers.
During the interview portion of the Miss Grand Philippines 2023 sashing ceremony in Pasig City last June 20, the interviewer first noted how Budol has millions of social media followers and is "famous enough" to be on Wikipedia, so much so that she's the only candidate whose name has a hyperlink.
"Apart from your big social media following, what else have you got in order to win the crown?” the interviewer asked.
Budol then answered in a lighthearted manner, mixing English and Filipino while using slang and laughing in between: "Thank you for that looong question for me… chariz. I have big followers because I have a big heart… O English yon, ha? Nakapag-compose po ako kaagad. Ano nga uli yung tanong?”
The interviewer repeated the same question but had to translate it into Filipino as Budol doesn't seem to understand it.
"Ano pa ang meron ka maliban sa iyong social media following na sa tingin mo ay maaari kang magrepresenta sa ating bansa sa paparating na Miss Grand International 2023?"
Budol then responded, “I think this is the right time. Last year, siguro hindi ko po oras. Ang sabi nga ng adbokasiya ng Miss Grand is… ano ba yon? World peace and what else again? Stop the war and peace."
She proceeded to talk about her youth and joked about how it's so pleasurable to speak in English. Going back to a serious tone in Filipino, she recalled suffering bullying in school and physical abuse at home, going to other countries, and getting held at gunpoint.
"Para sa akin, ang solid ng experience na iyon. In my own experience, ayokong maranasan ng iba yon," Budol said. "At bilang isang Miss Grand, sisimulan ko sa aking experience na ipalaganap sa ibang tao na huwag matakot."
"Kahit anong pinagdaanan ng mga taong laging nakangiti, may katuturan yon at ikaw yung magiging lakas ng ibang tao... para maging lakas," she continued.
“Hindi ko ma-explain pero na-experience ko po talagang ma-bully. Ayoko po ng away. I’m from [a] broken family. Mag-i-start po yan sa ating tahanan, magsisimula po tayo sa maliit na problema."
"Kapag naumpisahan po natin sa ating tahanan na maging world peace and for the love-love lang ang mga ferson," Budol added, "I think, good example yon para ipalaganap sa kung kalahatan."
When somebody's phone rang while she was talking, Budol then jokingly told the crowd to answer the call, as she draws a few laughs.
"Ayun po, maraming salamat. Sana nasagot ko po ang tanong niyo. Ang hirap lang po i-explain," Budol told the interviewer.
Clips of Budol's answer have since made the rounds on social media and didn't sit well with some netizens.
"Too much dogshow na din kasi sa Miss Grand Philippines hindi pwede na paulit-ulitin mo yong magtatanong ng question," one Facebook user said. "Sa activities siguro pwede mong i-dogshow pero sa show mismo sa stage parang ang pangit gawin."
“Tama naman sagot... kaya lang balahura nga sabi mo... nakakaturn off ka girl... attitude is the key," another user said.
"Bakit nmn ganun, seryoso yung tanong eh," another one said.
In a Facebook post, Budol acknowledged the criticisms and apologized to the public, explaining that she got nervous while on stage.
"Sa sobrang kaba ko po, hindi ko po naexplain yung kung anong gusto ko pong sabihin. [S]orry, I admit di po ako magaling Sa lahat ng bagay," she said. "[S]orry kung nawalan po kayo sakin ng kumpyansa Sa isang pag kakamali I’ll try my best to make you proud."
She explained that she didn't fool around, it's just that she didn't understand the question and tried to just be herself in answering.
Still, the beauty queen thanked those who are rooting for her.
Budol, who hails from Angono in Rizal, rose to fame as a television host of the variety show Wowowin, going by the moniker "Hipon Girl."
She notably answered the Q&A portion of Binibining Pilipinas 2022 in Filipino—and the only contestant at that. She finished first runner-up and bagged seven awards.
This year's Miss Grand International, meanwhile, will be held in October in Vietnam.