As promised in our story last week, Amandala continued its investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crowning of Charmaine Chinapen, 21, as Miss Belize on July 26, at the office of Pageants Belize on Racoon Street Extension in Belize City, and uncovered a few interesting facts.
First, Pageants Belize’s director, Margaret Johnson’s statement that Pageants Belize booked out the Belize Civic Center for the pageant, only to lose it thereafter, was found not to hold water by a quick check with the National Sports Council, which has responsibility for rental of the arena.
Sports Council director Vandley Jenkins, after checking with his booking clerk, told us they had no record of any such rental to Pageants Belize, and advised us to check with Johnson. When we did, she maintained that she did book the Civic, and the proof is at the NSC office.
Second, the issue of whether Tanisha Vernon’s relationship with Pageants Belize remains a sticking point for her family. While the former queen is currently in the United States on vacation, her mother continues to plea her case, and visited Amandala this week with a letter purportedly signed by Tanisha, a witness, and Johnson, on May 21 of this year in which Tanisha is formally released from competing in the 2008 Miss Universe pageant scheduled for July in Vietnam, but agreed with Pageants Belize to “extend (her) contract” to be eligible for future pageants, up to 2010, depending on her contract.
Johnson has said that Vernon never signed a contract and has no further relationship with Pageants Belize.
In a telephone interview, Johnson told Amandala she has “moved on” from the controversy, dedicating all her energies to getting Charmaine crowned Miss World.
But that road may be rocky for her and her mother Margaret, according to Anne Wade, speaking from past experience with her daughter Leilah, a former Miss Belize Universe and Miss Belize Earth delegate.
In a telephone interview from her office at the Public Utilities Commission, Wade said she wishes the “deserving” Chinapen all the best, as she represents Belize internationally, but warns that with what she calls Pageants’ Belize’s “undependability,” Charmaine could find it rough going to Kiev, Ukraine, in October.