Fellow queens congratulate Michelle Dee’s Miss Universe Philippines victory amid criticisms

Miss Universe Philippines 2023 Michelle Dee. Image: Instagram/@themissuniverseph

Miss Universe Philippines 2023 Michelle Dee. Image: Instagram/@themissuniverseph

Michelle Dee’s journey to the Miss Universe Philippines (MUPh) crown has been a long and grueling one — as it marks her second attempt in the national tilt — and beauty queens, pageant fans, and critics had a lot to say about her win.

Dee bested 37 other candidates to succeed Celeste Cortesi for the Miss Universe Philippines 2023 title, and is set to represent the country at the global pageant in El Salvador.

As a returning delegate, the Makati stunner’s win was welcomed by her fellow beauty queens on social media, with some titleholders expressing their excitement for Dee’s Miss Universe journey.

Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray took to social media to share her elation for Dee’s win. “Excited to witness how you’ll carry our sash again,” she said.

Reina Hispanoamericana 2017 Winwyn Marquez, who happens to be Dee’s cousin, said the “stars have aligned” for the latter’s coronation.

Meanwhile, Miss Universe Canada 2016 Siera Bearchell said in her vlog that while she’s a fan of Miss Supranational Philippines 2023 Pauline Amelinckx, she is happy nonetheless for Dee’s coronation.

Miss World Philippines 2018 Katarina Rodriguez, on the other hand, said Dee is “deserving” of her win on photographer Doc Marlon’s Instagram post.

Image: Screengrab from Instagram/@iamdoc

Binibining Pilipinas 2014 MJ Lastimosa congratulated the reigning titleholder on her win.

Meanwhile, Miss Universe 2022 R’Bonney Gabriel took to her Instagram Stories to celebrate Dee’s win with a backstage selfie.

Image: Screengrab from Instagram/@rbonneynola

‘Cooking show’

Like all queens, however, Dee’s win was also subjected to harsh criticism from netizens on social media, with some even accusing the MUPh organization of rigging the results in her favor.

One @TutsMyBareh said the national tilt was reduced into a “cooking show.”

Another @dnglnngrf called out the MUPh organization for its supposed mishandling of the results, as they pointed out that Dee’s Best in Evening Gown win was “meh.”

Twitter user @Yu_X_Ji pointed out that while Dee won the crown, Amelinckx and Miss Universe Philippines 2023 second runner-up Angelique Manto won the “crowd.”

Another @makhernandez__ also expressed their frustration towards the national pageant for its “rigged” results.

Twitter user @karlitsssssss said Dee had one of the “worst presentations” ever.

Amid the backlash, @egehhmae and @ziggyamores defended the reigning queen, as they stressed that the harsh remarks were uncalled for.

But Dee did not appear bothered by the negative comments on social media as she rejoiced over the privilege of wearing the La Mer en Majesté crown.

While she has yet to address her supporters on social media, her brief tweet is proof that she’s excited to represent the Philippines at the Miss Universe pageant.

“We did it,” she said on Twitter. EDV

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