Herlene Budol says she’s ‘signing off’ from joining beauty pageants: ‘Hindi ko na ipipilit yung sarili ko’
Herlene Budol. Image: screengrab from YouTube/Herlene Hipon
Herlene Budol announced that she will no longer join beauty pageants, saying she realized that she’s apparently not capable of achieving her dream—representing the country in international competitions.
The actress-turned-beauty-queen made the announcement through a sit-down vlog shown on her YouTube channel on Thursday, July 27.
“Natupad ‘yung pangarap kong magkaroon ng crown at [soon] ay ma-represent ko po ang Philippines international—kaso nga lang, si Budol [ay] nabudol,” she said, referring to her Miss Philippines Tourism 2023 title.
(My dream to have a crown and to represent the Philippines in an international pageant came true—but Budol was fooled.)
Budol then flashed a recorder clip of her being emotional while saying, “‘Yun siguro ‘yung ibig sabihin no’n. Nakakatatlong pageant na po ako pero hindi pa rin po pwede.” (Maybe that’s what it means. I already joined three pageants but still, I cannot compete internationally.)
“Ibig sabihin, wag na nga po natin ipilit. Ibig sabihin po no’n—ako po si Herlene Nicole Budol na nagsasabing, ‘Sorry, Pilipinas. This is my last pageant. Ba-bye. Herlene Nicole Budol, I’m signing off,'” she continued as she covered her face and sobbed.
(It means we should not force it anymore. It means that—I, Herlene Nicole Budol, am saying, “Sorry, Philippines. This is my last pageant. Ba-bye. Herlene Nicole Budol, I’m signing off.”)
Budol clarified that she was not acting and that she was emotional because she was hurt. The actress then expressed hopes for future Filipino beauty queens to use the Filipino language in international pageants.
“Nasasaktan lang po ako kasi parang totoo po lahat ng sinasabi niyo na pinipilit ko lang talagang sumali, na hindi ko po deserve,” she stated. “Nagsusubok lang po ako na abutin ‘yung mga pangarap ko na magkaroon po ako ng crown at ma-represent ko po ang Pilipinas pero ‘di ko po pala kaya.”
(I am hurt because it feels like what you have been saying all along—that I am just insisting and that I do not deserve it—is true. I was just trying to achieve my dream of having a crown and representing the Philippines, but as it turned out, I am not capable of doing that.)
“Kaya siguro ‘yung panahon at tadhana na ‘yung nagsasabi sa akin na, ‘Uy, tama na, Herlene. Gumising ka sa katotohanan. Hindi mo kayang i-representa ang Pilipinas,'” she added. “Sa mga may ayaw po sa akin, titigil na po ako. Hindi ko na po ipipilit ang sarili ko.”
(Perhaps it’s fate that is telling me, “Enough already, Herlene. Wake up. You are not capable of representing the Philippines.” To those who do not like me, this is it. I will no longer insist [on joining beauty pageants].)
After the clip ended, a cheerful Budol declared that she was no longer downhearted as she joked, “Siguro sasali ako sa mga…ramp model na lang kasi walang Q&A. Alam niyo na, forda bobo.”
(Maybe I’ll just pursue modeling because there’s no question-and-answer portion there; because, you know, [I’m] slow-witted.)
Budol also thanked her former talent manager Wilbert Tolentino at the latter part of the vlog, with the actress reiterating that he resigned from being her manager to prioritize his health and his family. /ra
