González Colón reiterates hope that Miss Universe pageant can be held in PR

By THE STAR STAFF

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón reiterated on Wednesday her interest in having the Miss Universe pageant held in Puerto Rico, despite allegations surrounding the franchise’s leadership.

“First of all, we are going to safeguard against any use of public funds in a pageant of this magnitude,” the governor said in a radio interview (NotiUno). “The reality is that the pageant, as proposed, is a spectacular one, one that has the potential to attract and fill hotel accommodations. There have been some allegations, some accusations against the current executives of that corporation. They are making changes in terms of who is leading the organization. We are waiting for those changes to occur. The Tourism Company is in charge of those negotiations and discussions because we want to hold this pageant in Puerto Rico.”

González Colón added that “this January we should see a resolution on that. [...] We are talking about the 75th anniversary [of the pageant].”

“There are allegations against the current executives, some of whom have resigned,” the governor added. “They are in that transition process that we should see now in January, before making final decisions.”

Following last year’s pageant, courts in Thailand issued rulings and court orders related to Anne Jakrajutatip, co-owner of the Miss Universe organization and CEO of the JKN Global Group conglomerate. Jakrajutatip was found guilty in a corporate fraud case linked to the disclosure of false financial information, which resulted in an arrest warrant against her and placed her outside of Thai jurisdiction.

The pageant’s other co-owner, Raúl Rocha Cantú, faces criminal charges and indictments, including organized crime related to the sale and movement of illicit products between Mexico and Guatemala, and drug trafficking from Guatemala to Mexican territory, among others.