Beauty queen Michele Gumabao shared a post about her mother after receiving criticisms about her move to join a party-list representing mothers which is led by controversial blogger Mocha Uson.
In an Instagram post, the volleyball star said her mother taught her “how to love like Jesus.”
“Why? The answer is very simple. My mom taught me how to love like Jesus. Even if it hurts, even when people don’t understand, even when it seems crazy,” Gumabao wrote on her post.
“My mom didn’t just tell my siblings and I how to love no matter who, to forgive no matter what and to be compassionate no matter what the cost, she lived it and showed us every day. She taught me to always see the good in every person and in every situation,” she added.
“We can’t just hope, post, tweet or wait for change to happen, we have to work for it and it should start right now. This pandemic showed all of us that life is finite and tomorrow might not come, do what you can today,” Gumabao further said.
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Gumabao’s post garnered more than 31,000 likes on the photo-sharing platform as of this writing.
Others lauded the beauty queen for her decision to run while some continued to criticize Gumabao and accused her of supposedly using religion to defend her House seat bid.
“Ang hindi nakaunawa iyong dati (nang) bitter, ma’am. Basta ako humahanga ako sa mga strong women,” an Instagram user said.
“Ginamit pa si Jesus (facepalm emoji). Haysss self-righteous pala ‘to,” a different user commented to Gumabao’s post.
Gumabao also said that she had a serious conversation with Uson to clarify the issues surrounding the controversial personality.
“I’ve shared the sentiment of the general public when I first met her. But that’s the thing, we only believe what we see on media or social media,” she said to CNN Philippines.
“More than fake news, and back with what I said in 2018, being responsible with what you report, you have to make it a point to see what’s the truth by going out there and meeting the person and confirming what you’re reading online,” Gumabao added.
“That’s what I did, I asked her questions straight up. That’s when we get past the scrutiny of the public,” she said.
The beauty queen said that she respects people’s opinions after receiving flak for being associated with Uson, whose verified Facebook page has been known to spread false posts and propaganda.
“It’s normal when you don’t know the person and that’s why I have it in me to respect all these people saying negative and positive things on social media. At the end of the day, they only know what they see on social media,” Gumabao said.
The party-list nominee added that she decided to enter politics with the intention to improve the state of the country.
“I’m coming into this with a heart to learn, and with a fresh and unique perspective. If we want to make a change in the country, we have to do it together,” Gumabao said.
The second runner-up of Miss Universe Philippines 2020 shocked some Filipinos when she filed a Certificate of Nomination and Acceptance for the Mothers For Change (MOCHA) party-list, together with Uson early this month.
RELATED: Michele Gumabao’s 2018 post on fake news resurfaces after joining Mocha Uson’s party-list
Gumabao is the second nominee of the party-list alongside Uson, the first nominee.
“I’ve always said I would use the platform I was given to advocate and be a voice for women and the youth. This is for every mother who sacrificed for us to be here right now,” the beauty queen said on Instagram before.
Social media users brought up her 2018 Facebook post where she shared her views about being against fake news months before joining Miss Globe that year.
In the post, Gumabao said that the public “should be responsible and diligent” in their words and in expressing their opinions.
“We should all commit ourselves to speaking, posting and sharing only the TRUTH! No to cyberbullying, no to fake news and no to shaming!” she wrote before.
Some false posts that Uson’s Facebook page have shared included claims against Vice President Leni Robredo, opposition Sen. Risa Hontiveros and the 1987 Philippine Constitution, among others.
