Lolo Udong, Lola Utay: Miss Universe Philippines Gazini Ganados shares inspirations behind elderly care advocacy

MANILA, Philippines — Miss Universe Philippines 2019 Gazini Ganados misses the time when she was still young, playing “tagu-taguan” (hide and seek) and “dakup-dakup” with her cousins in their mountain village in Dapitan.

Gazini, most especially, misses being a kid in the arms of her Lolo Udong and Lola Utay Ganados, her grandparents where her mom, a single parent, would leave her whenever her mom would go to work.

“Being with my grandparents, they have taught me how simple and beautiful life can be,” the 23-year-old Tourism graduate recalled in an exclusive interview with Philstar.com.

She admitted that her grandparents used to be strict, especially, when it comes to her sexy pageant outfits.

“They're strict sometimes, but they are very, very loving. They really take the time to give the attention that you want because my mom was working the whole time I'm with them, so they are my outlets of emotions whenever I feel sad or happy,” she said. 

Her grandparents have become Gazini’s inspirations to become an elderly care advocate.

According to her, the country lacks in policies, attention and facilities for the elderly. She thinks that there should be a senior citizen center for every baranggay nationwide for the elderly to enjoy medical services with co-senior citizens. 

“There should always be a senior citizen center in which and where senior citizens can be medically taken cared of but most especially where they can also be productive through stimulating their minds, through an active aging, a healthy lifestyle to which they can have a community where they can engage to one another because social engagement is very important because when you are getting older and you do not have anything else to do, you don't process your mind and that makes it easier for aging to go into you,” Gazini explained.  

The beauty queen from Cebu also said that the aging population will rise up to 10 percent in 2025, so she is calling the government to provide social welfare for the elderly. 

“Right now, we are already at six percent. When I get older, I would want to have something that is prioritizing the elderly because I know we are all scared of getting old. But maybe one day we can look forward to getting older,” she said.  

Gazini also said that she is not afraid of getting old but afraid of leaving this world without doing anything right. 

“I'm scared of the oblivion itself, to life after death because I'm scared of not doing anything right before I leave this world.”

Gazini will be competing at the 2019 Miss Universe pageants tentatively to be held in South Korea later this year. — Videos by EC Toledo IV, editing by Erwin Cagadas Jr.