A photo posted by Nicole Cordoves (@binibiningnicolecordoves) on Aug 4, 2016 at 5:05am PDT

MANILA – Binibining Pilipinas Grand International 2016 Nicole Cordoves said she hates it when people comment that she “doesn’t speak like a beauty queen,” stressing that there is nothing wrong with being vocal about her opinions.

She made the statement as she mentioned how she has always been criticized for being “too confident.”

“There are bashers commenting na, ‘Ah, she’s too confident. She doesn’t speak like a beauty queen.’ I hate those and I’m very open about it. I hate it,” she said in an interview with the entertainment website Push.

“The worse thing you can do is to shut a woman up. You cannot do that,” she explained, adding, “We really need to let our voice go out there and hopefully bring about better change.”

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Despite this, Cordoves finds relief in the fact that many people consider her the “most well-versed” in this year’s batch of Binibining Pilipinas beauties.

“Joining pageants, I’ve always wanted to be known as someone who’s really smart, who can actually contribute something,” she said.

“I think each of us girls, we have our own weaknesses. It just so happened that communication is my strength,” she added, noting that pageant walking has always been her weakness.

Cordoves left the Philippines last Friday to represent the country in Miss Grand International 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The coronation night will be held on October 25.

Should Cordoves win, she will be the first Filipina to bring home the crown from the four-year-old pageant.