MANILA — Beauty queen Samantha Lo, whose recent international pageant bid was beset with controversy, has prematurely ended her reign as Binibining Pilipinas Grand International 2019.

Lo submitted a resignation letter to Binibining Pilipinas Charities Incorporated (BPCI), citing her need to pursue another direction in life.

BPCI has accepted Lo’s resignation, effective November 27.

Lo’s resignation came a month after she competed in the Miss Grand International pageant in Venezuela, where she came short of entering the top 20.

Her participation was marred with controversy in relation to her travel documents. She was detained in Paris due to issues with her passport, before she finally arrived in Venezuela.

BPCI and Lo subsequently released conflicting statements regarding her detention in Paris, and the supposed illegal means the beauty queen had secured her passport.

Lo, one of six titlists in the Binibining Pilipinas 2019 pageant, would have formally crowned her successor in mid-2020.

It remains to be seen whether a runner-up in the 2019 pageant will take over the remainder of her reign, following Lo’s resignation. — Report from Mario Dumaual, ABS-CBN News