MANILA, Philippines --- Filipino entrepreneur Maria Luisa Varela topped the 2023 Miss Planet International pageant in Cambodia on Jan. 29, capturing the crown in the competition that 2022 Binibining Pilipinas first runner-up Herlene Nicole Budol was supposed to participate in. Varela bested 13 other international contenders to inherit the title from Monique Best from South Africa in ceremonies staged at the Koh Pich Theater in the kingdom's capital in Phnom Penh. The international competition caused quite a stir late last year when multiple delegates, including Budol, withdrew their participation. They had already arrived in the African nation's capital of Kampala, and had alre...Keep on reading: Philippines’ Maria Luisa Varela wins in controversial Miss Planet International pageant