Maria Venus Raj out, Nicolette Henson in
Posted by womenagerie on March 31, 2010
Reigning Binibining Pilipinas-Universe 2010 title holder Maria Venus Raj was stripped of her crown by the Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Inc. (BPCI) because of nationality issues.
BPCI issued a statement saying that it “decided with a heavy heart, to let Binibining Pilipinas-Universe 2010 Maria Venus Raj go after the organization discovered inconsistencies in her birth records, in contrast to her personal account of her birth.”
Based on her birth certificate, Raj’s was born in Camarines Sur, while both she and her mother claimed that she was born in Doha, Qatar.
Vincent Raj, her father, was registered as a Catholic Filipino in the birth certificate. It was however discovered that he is an Indian national and is not married to her mother.
BPCI acknowledges that Raj’s birth certificate is authentic, however, the information contained therein were fabricated. It was filed three years after Venus birth by her mother’s cousin who was then an employee at the civil registrar’s office.
Raj will be replaced by 2nd Runner-up Binibining Pilipinas-Universe Nicolette Henson who will represent the Philipines in the 2010 Miss Universe. First runner-up Dianne Necio was not chosen because she is not yet qualified to join the international pagent. Necio is only 17 years old, and the Miss Universe pageant has a qualifying age requirement of 18.
Henson, who was surprised at the sudden turn of events that led to her becoming the country’s representative in the Miss Universe, was saddened by what happened to Raj, whom she said is her close friend.
She defended her from critics by pointing out that even the BPCI clarified that Raj “had no malicious intent.”
She however promised to do her best when she represents the country in the prestigious competition.
Henson is a 21-year old Broadcast Journalism major at St. Scholastica’s College and hails from Pampanga.
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