In brief
In a dramatic turn of events, two judges for the Miss Universe pageant have quit just before the competition, as accusations of a rigged selection process emerge. Omar Harfouch claims that an unofficial jury has been selecting finalists without the official judges' consent, leading to his resignation. His fellow judge, Claude Makélélé, also stepped down for personal reasons. The pageant is set to take place this Friday in Bangkok, Thailand, following previous controversies surrounding comments made by organizers.
Two Miss Universe judges have resigned days before the annual beauty pageant, with one of them accusing organisers of rigging the selection process.
Lebanese-French musician Omar Harfouch, who announced his resignation from the eight-member jury on Instagram, alleged that an impromptu jury had pre-selected finalists ahead of the competition, set to be held on Friday in Thailand.
Hours later, French football manager Claude Makélélé also announced he'd pulled out, citing unforeseen personal reasons.
The resignations come two weeks after several Miss Universe contestants walked out of a pre-pageant event over controversial comments made by an official from host nation Thailand.
An impromptu jury has been formed to select 30 finalists from among the 136 participating countries, without the presence of any of the real [eight] members of the jury, including me, Mr Harfouch wrote in an Instagram post on Tuesday, saying he had discovered this via social media.
The unofficial jury comprises individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some personal relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants, he claimed.
Mr Harfouch did not elaborate on how this impromptu jury would function, or how it would override the official jury's decision.
The Miss Universe Organisation on Tuesday put out a statement to rebuff Mr Harfouch's claims, saying that no external group has been authorised to evaluate delegates or select finalists. It suggested that Mr Harfouch may have been referring to the Beyond the Crown programme: a social impact initiative that operates independently from the Miss Universe competition.
Mr Makélélé, who also announced his resignation via Instagram, described it as a difficult decision. I hold Miss Universe in the highest regard. The platform represents empowerment, diversity, and excellence - values I have always championed throughout my career, he wrote.
The beauty pageant drew backlash earlier this month after its Thailand director Nawat Itsaragrisil publicly berated Miss Mexico, Fatima Bosch, at a pre-pageant event.
In videos that have since gone viral, Ms Bosch and several other contestants walked out of the event, prompting rebuke from the Miss Universe Organisation.
