Miss PH Earth 2025 Joy Barcoma explains why she's speaking up on flood control mess
Miss Philippines Earth 2025 Joy Barcoma slammed the alleged corruption on flood control projects, brushing off comments that she may lose the crown for speaking up about environmental injustice.
The beauty queen from Bacoor City has been making rounds on social media over the past few days for her critical yet humorous posts about the hearings on alleged corruption in flood control projects.
On Sept. 8, contactors Pacifico "Curlee" Discaya and Cezarah "Sarah" Discaya named politicians allegedly benefiting from the anomalous flood control projects during the Senate inquiry. At the time, Barcoma joined several users in resharing a satirical post that listed the linked politicians as "Civil Service Exam passers."
"Congratulations po sa lahat ng politicians na may latin honors today. Happy graduation!" she wrote.
In a separate post, she quipped, "PBB Senate Edition: Congratulations, housemate. Safe ka na."
Her posts drew mixed reactions after they were shared by the Facebook page Pageanthology, an account covering all things pageantry. Other social media users praised her outspoken and humorous take on the social issue.
"Kaloka this queen[!] Love her much more," one user said.
"Ilabas ang dugong PUPian," another added, referring to Barcoma's alma mater, the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.
Meanwhile, others suggested that she tone it down as she may compromise her chances for the Miss Earth crown.
A Facebook user commented, "Huwag ka munang makisawsaw girl, focus ka muna sa competition mo baka ma-bash ka," to which the beauty queen replied, "Social Injustice is Environmental Injustice. And I don’t mind being bashed for standing up for what I know is right."
"Imagine billions of pesos went to the pockets of corrupt politicians that could’ve alleviated the lives of our countrymen. Alam niyo po ba kung gaano karami ang namatay sa leptospirosis? How many families were affected because of the flood?" Barcoma continued.
"I appreciate that you care about my competition[,] but I care more about my countrymen. I was first a Filipino citizen before I became Miss Philippines Earth. I owe it to our people to fight and speak up for Filipinos—and that includes you," the beauty queen said.
In a separate comment, Barcoma added, "Hindi lang po ito laban para sa bayan, laban din po ito para sa kalikasan."
In another repost by Pageanthology, Barcoma responded again to a commenter who warned her about losing the international competition for being too vocal about politics.
"If you think I am afraid to lose, you don't really know me. If speaking up would make me lose the competition, do you think I would really like to work with an organization that silences [its] queens?" Barcoma said.
"Ang ironic lang that we applaud beauty queens who say 'I will use my voice', 'I will utilize my platform' but criticize them when they do so," she added.
Barcoma added that her "greatest loss" would be staying silent. "A crown gained at the expense of my people and my purpose would mean nothing. My voice, my stand, and my advocacies will always be for Filipinos[,] and that [weighs] more than any title," she said.
"PS. Thankfully, the organization has never called [my] attention regarding my views and stances. In fact, they sometimes share my posts and interviews despite me being 'vocal.' If it doesn't matter to them, why should it matter to you?" she added.
Barcoma was crowned the Miss Philippines Earth 2025 in August. She is vying for the country's fifth crown in the international competition. The date and venue have yet to be announced.
The issue in the government's flood control projects began in July as the rains triggered massive flooding in the metro.
