MANILA – Miss Philippines Earth candidate Bellatrix Tan has aired her side after her answer in the recently concluded national pageant became viral over the weekend.

During the competition, the candidates were asked about trending topics on social media. For this segment, Tan was asked about her understanding of the El Niño and La Niña weather phenomena.

Tan, who hailed from Zamboanga, answered: “El Niño is what we are facing right now. If we do simple things like planting trees, then we will not experience drought, right? If we start now, we will achieve La Niña. Thank you.”

Her answer confused a lot of netizens such that “La Niña” became one of the most talked about topics on Twitter in the Philippines.

However, in an interview with DZMM on Monday, Tan defended herself.

“I know po talaga yung El Niño and La Niña. Kasi alam ko po talaga na yung El Niño, drought po, dry. Sa La Niña naman po, heavy rainfall. Kasi nung na-realize ko na mali pala 'yung pag-deliver ko, 'yung pag-answer ko, bigla pong nag-react na ako. Sinabi ko na nga po dun sa host na alam ko kung ano ang La Nina, heavy rainfall. Hindi ko po ma-explain kung bakit ganun po [ang naging pagsagot ko],” she said.

If she could only turn back time, Tan said she would have given this answer: “El Nino and La Nina are both effects of climate change. If we don’t do our part, we will really experience drought and heavy rainfall. Act now so we can have a better future.”

She also has a message to her bashers, who are attacking her and are laughing at her answer on social media.

“Siguro try niyo sumali ng national pageant. You’ll know the feeling. Usually po talaga, napapansin din po talaga ng supporters ko na 'yung mga nagba-bash, 'yun po 'yung mga hindi ko po alam kung na-experience na ba nila. Sobrang hirap po ng Q&A kahit gaano kasimple 'yan. ‘Di ba po ang dami ring beauty queens na nagkakamali sa question and answer?” she said.

On the other hand, Tan thanked her avid supporters who have been defending her.

Miss Philippines Earth is Tan’s first national pageant. She holds a degree in Communication Arts following her graduation last March.