Miss Universe president mulls selling pageant amid controversy: 'I'm so fed up'
Raúl Rocha, the embattled president of Miss Universe Organization, is mulling selling the franchise.
In an interview on Nov. 25 with Mexican journalist Adela Micha on her show Me Io Dijo Adela, uploaded on La Saga's YouTube channel, Rocha shared his frustration with the controversies that continue to plague the 74th Miss Universe pageant.
"I'm so fed up with all the talk," Rocha told Micha in Spanish, translated by Google. "I don't lend myself to that kind of thing."
"I'm looking for someone to pass it on to," he said, referring to MUO. "This is like a test, a relay race. Who do I pass the baton to?"
Rocha acquired 50% of MUO in 2024 through his Legacy Holdings Group.
After the coronation night on Nov. 21, which crowned Mexico's Fatima Bosch, Lebanese-French musician Omar Harfouch, a judge who reportedly resigned two days before the event, claimed that the win was pre-determined due to Rocha's alleged business with her father. Rocha has since refuted this claim.
Some candidates have also relinquished their titles, including Côte d'Ivoire's Olivia Yacé as Miss Universe Africa and Oceania and Brigitta Schaback as Miss Universe Estonia. Miss Universe Guyana and Ghana national director Teri Brown-Walker also withdrew from her roles over transparency concerns.
Meanwhile, Miss Palestine Nadeen Ayoub claimed that the fan-voted Most Beautiful People category was rigged.
'Psycho pianist'
Much of what Rocha talked about in his interview was his disdain for Harfouch, whom he did not mention by name.
Harfouch claimed on his Instagram that an "impromptu jury" had selected 30 finalists ahead of the coronation night, and that the results of the selection were being kept secret. Soon after the musician resigned from the jury panel, two more judges quit, as well. In a previous statement, Rocha maintained that no judges resigned.
"Refer to him as the...psycho pianist so as not to give him any more publicity, because [publicity is] what he wants," Rocha told Micha.
He said he only brought Harfouch into the jury panel because a friend recommended the composer, saying Harfouch had a concept for a peace concert.
Connection with Fatima Bosch?
Micha, a Mexican journalist, also asked in the interview whether Bosch's father asked Rocha for a favor because of past business dealings.
In Jan. 2023, according to Rocha, his company Soluciones Gasiferas del Sur was awarded a P750 million contract with Mexican oil company Pemex, where Bosch's father, Bernardo Bosch Hernandez, is a long-time employee.
Rocha said the contract was good for 11 months.
"It expired in Dec. of 2023. I wasn't even buying Miss Universe yet...I didn't know anyone from Miss Universe, much less Fatima's family [then]," he said.
He previously said that he only met Bosch's family two months ago at the Miss Universe Mexico pageant in September.
Miss Cote D'Ivoire controversy
As Bosch was crowned Miss Universe, Côte d'Ivoire's Olivia Yacé came in as fourth runner-up. Amid allegations of rigging "Look up how many countries Cote D'Ivoire needs visas to enter," said Rocha. "One hundred and seventy-five countries require [a visa from Cote D'Ivoire."
He explained the financial cost and the time required to apply for those visas would have been prohibitive.
"If she needs a visa in 175 countries, that's kind of difficult," Rocha said.
Yacé has since relinquished her crown as Miss Universe Africa and Oceana.
