In a media statement by LUX Management, the licensee holder of Miss Universe Fiji, they stated, ”We would like to state that we are withholding funding for Miss Universe Fiji and will not be renewing the license for next year until the voting controversy is resolved.
We are very disappointed with what has occurred and apologize for what has transpired.
We have been completely misled and betrayed by the event organizer on so many levels. We had no idea simply providing financial support to such an event could cause such issues for us and the small but dedicated team who worked tirelessly behind the scenes.
We would never have approved what’s now been a six-figure amount in total outlays, for expenses and total costs, if we had known the event organizer’s agenda was to rig the voting to have his client installed as the wrongful winner.
It’s caused such unnecessary controversy and heartache for many involved.
The licensee should have selected all 8 judges to ensure independence and ensured that there is to be no discrimination towards non-Fiji Indian contestants whatsoever.
This was considered a not-for-profit endeavor to give back to the Fiji community and bring back Miss Universe after 43 years. It was not for an event organizer to use it as a way to exploit us for tens of thousands of dollars by making continued false promises, nor for him to use it as a platform to profit from.
The focus was to be on contribution and helping Fiji be on the international stage of Miss Universe after a 43-year absence.
We apologize over what’s happened, and we only hope justice is served and the party that betrayed us and others does not get away with his deception and constant smear campaign that’s sadly occurring now in the media.
As important as such contests are for many, we feel there are far more concerning issues occurring in the world currently, and unnecessary distractions plus brand damage over a simple sponsorship gone wrong is most disappointing.
The allegations that a former partner of one of the contestants owns the license are also false.
He isn’t a director or shareholder of the licensed company; he is simply a shareholder in an associated company.
He has no interest in being involved in beauty pageants.
To bring him into it is nothing other than a smear campaign by an ever increasingly desperate event organizer. To divert the attention away from the voting discrepancies raised on the night, his failure to disclose his bias and conflict of interests, and his appointing almost all judges, who turned out to be his family, friends, business partners, and associates.
We once again apologize for the voting controversy and that we didn’t do more due diligence on selecting the event organizer. And ensuring he could not appoint almost all the judges (hhis family, friends, associates, and business partner) and then deny the licensee vote, to install his client as the wrongful winner and then commence a media smear campaign when his actions were exposed after an investigation into his misconduct that was raised on the night, and attempt an effective coup of trying to take over MUF by his continued false statements that his client is the winner, as he is somehow acting on behalf of Miss Universe.
The media also should do more fact-checking and simply stop the nonsense of listening to the complicit party and unauthorized judges, who are all of course simply going to say what the event organizer requests. One of the judges attacks on the rightful winner is also poor form and not necessary.
The event organizer was terminated on Sept. 2 for obvious reasons, and all judges organized by him were invalidated as a result of non-disclosure.
The client he manages he appointed in the night without authority is not the winner, and injunctive relief may be taken to stop such vote rigging being accepted and a event organizer/mmanager able to install his client as a winner to maximize his profiteering by Global Sponsorship deals.
It’s no doubt why he is happy to keep fueling the controversy to maximize his clients PR.
Media should contact MUF for questions relating to Miss Universe Fiji, not the terminated event organizer, who never had authority to select judges or the winner or speak on behalf of MUF.
All preapproved invoices by MUF will be honored as 95% have already been paid. Those who made promises by the event organizer can contact us to assist and verify.
Unfortunately, the chances of such sponsorship being approved ever again for such an event are highly unlikely.
We wish a future licensee much better luck and suggest only contract event organizers with no conflicts of interest, and Fiji and the contestants best interest at heart,” they concluded.
They also listed missuniversefiji.org to be updated with MUF media statements re the matter.
