Pageant kings, including Fil-Am, on highlights of their ongoing reign
MANILA, Philippines — Mister Supranational 2024 Dr. Fezile Mkhize from South Africa, Mister Global 2024 Dom Corilla from the Philippines, and Manhunt International 2024 Kevin Dasom from Thailand are in the country to grace the finals of Mister Pilipinas Worldwide, happening tonight, April 28, in Newport Performing Arts Theater in Pasay City.
At a press conference in Okada Manila yesterday, April 27, the handsome trio was asked about the highlights of their ongoing reign as pageant kings.
Mkhize, a medical doctor from South Africa who specialized in cardiothoracic surgery and reportedly practices at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital in Johannesburg, shared: “Great question, I think with our showcase coming very soon, I have been thinking about my reign and some of the things I've been privileged and had the honor to do. One of the things that stick out for me is the leprosy work we do at Supranational with the Sasakawa Health Foundation. We really do try to make sure that we aren't just about the beauty element, but being on the ground and helping people.
“I was able to go to Ethiopia, Mozambique, and I was able to go to Indonesia as well. We've really been trying to make sure everybody understands that the beauty pageant world isn't just about walking and looking great and kind of press conferences. It's gentlemen and women who say, We want to make a change, we want to affect change.
“And yes, it's great that these guys look so handsome and they look beautiful, but it's more about shining the light on the important things in the world that need us to really help. So, for me, that's the thing that stuck out. It also helps that kind of medically, it's been interesting to me, but yeah, that's my front of mind. And hopefully [stay in] Manila as well, once I'm done with this.”
Dasom, an Irish-Thai model/actor/athlete, shared: “For me, it's been being able to find a home because for the past six years, since prior to the pandemic, I've been around the world. I’ve been traveling every six months, every eight months. But after winning the title of Manhunt International, I've been able to find a place to settle down here in the Philippines, to stay grounded, to always have somewhere I can go back to and just relax.
“And I think that's really important because this life can get really busy, really stressful, and it can also maybe force you to forget who you are and where you come from. But I've been blessed and thankful to finally have somewhere to stay, somewhere I can call home."
Corilla, a successful model in the Philippines, shared: “For me, being a title holder, it's about passing to the next crown. It's very, there's something very wholesome about the Mister Pilipinas candidates asking me for advice on what they should do because they wanna, they said that my aura is very different, my presence. You know, they said they wanna capture that. And so just being able to talk to them and make them more confident in themselves and just being this presence and this knowledge to them and to the fans, I think that's a very big highlight for my reign.”
