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It is pertinent to note that Ms. Adetshina graciously
accepted an invitation to participate in the forthcoming Miss Universe Nigeria
pageant in August, following her withdrawal from the Miss South Africa pageant
amidst certain controversies.
While we acknowledge the commendable nature of Miss Universe
Nigeria’s invitation, there have been emerging concerns regarding fairness,
primarily due to Ms. Adetshina’s recent rise to fame and the potential impact
on the previously qualified contestants.
Despite the public’s sympathy and Ms. Adetshina’s
substantial fanbase, the organizers firmly maintain that she will be treated
impartially, just like any other contestant.
In an exclusive interview with PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday,
Murray-Bruce stated that Ms. Adetshina participated in the same audition
process as all other contestants. He emphasized that she submitted a formal
application and underwent a rigorous audition conducted by a panel of screeners
and judges last weekend.
‘‘The only difference was that she participated remotely.
She’ll share a room with the other girls, rehearse with everyone, and face the
same rules. No special privileges. If she doesn’t rehearse, she’ll be kicked
out. Any delegate who doesn’t follow the rules will be disqualified.
“It’s an equal opportunity for all of them. No one’s going
to be singled out; she’s going to rehearse like everybody else. Because if she
doesn’t rehearse, she’ll be kicked out. Any girl, any delegate that doesn’t
follow the rules and regulations of the organisation, will be kicked out of the
contest; everything will be uniform. Nigerians will see for themselves,’’ he
said.
Stressing the absence of favoritism, Mr. Murray-Bruce stated
that rigorous camp regulations apply to all 25 delegates.
‘‘It’s like joining the military. If you don’t behave
yourself, you fall out. There will be no favouritism. But the moment you have
favouritism, it becomes a huge problem. We don’t want that to happen. We’ve
been organising pageants for 38 years; I know what’s right and wrong. We treat
each one like they’re all queens,’’ he explained.
Murray-Bruce elaborated on the invitation extended to
Adetshina, explaining that her status as a dual citizen qualified her to
participate in the Miss Universe Nigeria competition
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“She (Ms Adetshina) was promoting Nigeria and South Africa in camp (Miss SA 2024). She has a Nigerian father. Despite representing South Africa, she was being threatened. It had nothing to do with the organisation of Miss South Africa; it was the ministers. The organisation was 100 per cent behind her, but the government was anti-her’’.
“I contacted the Miss South Africa National Director and
asked, ‘Chidimma has a Nigerian father and a South African mother. Can she come
to Nigeria to participate in our national pageant? Because she is a Nigerian as
well.’ In response, the Miss SA Director said, ‘No, she’s South African.’ I
reminded her, ‘She also has a Nigerian father. Once you have a Nigerian parent,
you’re more than likely a dual citizen.’ The Miss SA Director couldn’t give a
definite answer and had to reach Chidimma. We still issued a press release
inviting her and ‘gave her an olive branch.’”
“We said, ‘Look, we know you’ve been through a lot. Come to
your motherland and participate in our national pageant.’ And she reached out
to me that same Friday and tentatively agreed in principle to participate in
the pageant. But she had to be clear with the authorities, lawyers, parents,
and everybody.”
Murray-Bruce explained that although 24 delegates had
already been selected, Ms. Adetshina’s circumstances were exceptional. The
organizers recognized the importance of supporting women in the diaspora, which
prompted her invitation.
“We had already selected 24 delegates for the show; I agree.
But for this, it was an exceptional case. We didn’t want to leave any ladies in
the diaspora stranded. We had to help her out. That’s why we invited her in.
Nigeria has been known for many things in the past. Can we do something
positive once in a lifetime? That should be the narrative. This is a
humanitarian story, and you can’t run away from it.”
Since its inception in 1983, Miss Universe Nigeria has never
extended a special invitation to any contestant, making Adetshina’s inclusion a
historic event.
This decision sets a notable precedent and has the potential
to influence how future pageants address similar situations.
In response to an inquiry from this publication regarding
the potential impact of her popularity on the competition’s outcome, Mr.
Murray-Bruce provided the following statement, “I can’t predict what will
happen. But there are a lot of girls out there among the 24, so she’s just
going to be one of them anyway. In any competition, there are always favourites
among supporters and viewers at home. They have their favourites. They’ll
always speculate on those. But it’s left to the judges at the end of the day.”
“If you go to a football match, you have star players. In
the pageants, it’s the same thing. We have a few of them already in place. Out
of the 24, they’re already being rooted for. It’s all equal play. If she comes
and they root for her, fine. You can’t stop anyone from rooting for anybody.
The organisation is based on what she goes through in camp. We judge people by
what is seen on stage and what happens in camp—how you relate to one another.
Those parts are taken down—if you’re snobbish, rude, or misbehave. So
everything counts in camp and also on stage.”
With regard to concerns about the potential impact of the
late inclusion of the 23-year-old law student on the pageant competition and
its participants, the president of the organizing committee provided
clarification, “They ought to come with a competitive spirit because you don’t
know what to expect. Fight with their best for what they want. And any of the
delegates can get that.”
“There will be a level playing field. If there were no fair
play, by now, we would not be organising these pageants because our
international affiliates see what is going on; they audit us. Off the record,
the girls (Miss Universe Nigeria contestants) were discussing among themselves
that they wanted her (Chidimma) to come. They wanted her to be inclusive with
the 24 delegates. They were deliberating, and it was just timely with our memo
to invite Ms Adetshina.”
According to Murray-Bruce, the Miss Nigeria Universe camp
will commence on August 23rd and continue for a week, culminating in
the grand finale on August 31st.
The Silverbird president disclosed Ms. Adetshina’s state of
origin in Nigeria, emphasizing that her inclusion will not disrupt the Miss
Nigeria Universe schedule or pre-planned itinerary.
He explained, "Adetshina's father hails from Enugu;
however, she will represent Taraba State. This allocation of states to
contestants is a customary practice employed by the organization to ensure
fairness and prevent tribalism.”
The competition presents the winner with the esteemed opportunity to represent Nigeria at the 73rd Miss Universe pageant in Mexico, scheduled for November 16th.