Gazini Ganados’ advice to next MGI All Stars bet: ‘Maghanda ka ng pera’

BANGKOK, Thailand — Gazini Ganados did not mince words when asked for advice to the girls who would want to take part in the next edition of MGI All Stars, and shared how big of a factor one’s financial capacity is in order to move forward in the competition.

“Maghanda ka ng pera. Iyon na iyon, from the heart na talaga iyon. Maghanda ka ng pera kasi hindi madali, physically, mentally, emotionally, but also financially,” the 2019 Miss Universe Top 20 semifinalist said after the competition.

(Prepare money. That’s it, that’s from the heart. Prepare money because it’s not easy, physically, mentally, emotionally, but also financially.)

Ganados was one of the five candidates from the Philippines in the first edition of the groundbreaking competition among international pageant veterans. The others were 2022 Miss International Queen winner Fuschia Anne Ravena, reigning Noble Queen of the Universe Alexia Nuñez, resigned 2016 Miss Philippines Earth Imelda Schweighart, and 2025 Universal Woman Arabia Keylyn Trajano.

READ: Max Collins pokes fun at resemblance to MGI All Stars winner Vanessa Pulgarin

Ganados, who has transitioned to show business from pageantry, staged a pageant comeback and successfly clinched a Top 5 spot at the contest’s “Grand Final” held at the MGI Hall in Bangkok, Thailand, on May 30.

Miss Universe Philippines Organization Pres. Jonas Gaffud, also head of Empire Philippines that manages Ganados’ career and is responsible for sending her to the Bangkok tilt, revealed that he spent half a million pesos on votes just on the final night alone.

Public votes played a crucial role in shaping the outcome of the recently-concluded MGI All Stars, from the preliminaries and at every stage of competition during the Grand Final.

Judges’ scores accounted for 70 percent of the candidates’ scores, while the remaining 30 percent were for the public votes. Even three semifinal slots were awarded to the “fast-track” winners that were determined through a combination of judges’ scores and public votes.

To illustrate how crucial public votes were in the outcome of the recent competition, Ganados and Mariana Beckova from the Czech Republic ranked third and second, respectively, in the Top 5 based on judes’ scores.

But the two were edged out of the Final 3 by eventual winner Vanessa Pulgarin from Colombia and second runner-up Nguyen Huong Giang from Vietnam for pulling in more votes from the public.

Pulgarin also edged out Faith Maria Porter from Ghana in the final round because of votes. The Ghanaian contender received the highest average score from the judges after the question round, but eventually finished as first runner-up.

Both Porter and Beckova later shared on social media that their supporters were unable to vote online because of issues with the voting portal. The website crashed earlier during the Grand Final that caused a one-hour interruption in the program, but organziers claimed the site was successfully restored and proceeded with the ceremonies.

As winner of the first edition of MGI All Stars, Pulgarin received $100,000, and will return in the second season to defend her title. If she successfully clinches the crown in three consecutive editions, her prize money will increase to $1 million. /edv