Brains and Beauty?

Enuma Chigbo talks about the makings of the Calabar Carnival Queen Beauty Pageant in Nigeria.

Beauty Pageants, ideally, should be a thing of delight. There have been success stories dating back to the biblical times. Queen Esther had her status totally transformed from being a common slave girl to not just a beauty queen, but one who would save the entire nation of Israel from imminent disaster.

Coming back home to Nigeria, we may all be well aware of the success story of our very own super model Oluchi, who from very humble beginnings rose to be an outstanding model of international repute. The total transformation of these extraordinary women may never have come to the fore if they were denied a platform where they could showcase their beauty and talent.

Recent times have witnessed an emergence of innumerable beauty pageants, as stakeholders of various organisations have identified the need to have a beautiful woman enhance their products. However it’s never that simple...

In Lagos...

"Actuarry, even if you give me mirrion birrion I cannot do that." What she meant to say was, "Actually, I would never compromise my 'integrity' with a judge to win a competition, not for all the millions in the world." That was the highlight of the Lagos zone screening for the first ever Calabar Carnival Queen Beauty Pageant. At that point, one of the panellists, Egbuka from Big Brother Nigeria 2006 scuttles towards the poolside of the plush Elion House Hotel, where the screening was held, to conceal sporadic outbursts of laughter. The rest of the panellists sit there aghast as the same contestant, a raving beauty entertains or perhaps shocks them with crude dance steps that clearly contradict her sophisticated mien. Getting the right people to contest for this competition may not exactly be a joyride.

I imagined Elenda Dokubo, Executive Secretary of the Calabar Carnival Commission thinking. The requirements for contestants were a minimum of two years of university education, 70% Intelligence Quota (IQ) and some other things, like background knowledge of Cross River State as the lucky queen would be required to sell the State as an ideal tourist hub within Nigeria and abroad.

"So, who is the Governor of Cross River State?" The Panellists asked another contestant. Her answer... "Donald Duke" and the search continues... Hmm, the young lady was somewhat behind the times considering that she had just named the previous governor...

The screening period across the nation though short (conducted between October and November2008) was most definitely an eye opener. I got to learn that Beauty Pageants were big time businesses these days. If there was money to be won, then there would be numerous agents who would scout for and perhaps invest in potential and maybe vulnerable hopefuls with an aim to having a huge percentage of winner's earnings. "At least it's better than soliciting on the streets," I learned from a friend of one of the contestants who prefers to remain anonymous. "Actually, one may be at a vantage position when you are on good terms with your agent and maybe the judges" Hmm...I wonder what the difference is...

Could this be the reason why most of the contestants who took part in the screening exercise were stunningly beautiful but totally ignorant and inarticulate? Most of them came through agents, who did not even take time to equip them with knowledge that would help them scale through the preliminaries. Like knowing who the Governor of Cross River State was! Fortunately, the brain behind this landmark initiative was a woman, so was the Executive Secretary of the Commission, so I guess that the extra friendly, or being "on good terms" bit towards certain people would have jolly well been a waste of time!

In Abuja...

If Lagos was bad, Abuja was even worse. Surprisingly, the contestants here seemed more aggressive, and totally devoid of natural beauty. It was false eyelashes and hair extensions all the way, from their heads down to their waists in different appalling colours, not to mention their totally disrespectful attitude. Perhaps their rough demeanour may have had a lot to do with their agents. I recall this guy, I'll call him sleazy Barry K - reminiscent of Lance Spearman- a slimy character in Nigeria's photo magazine, FILM a must read in the 70's. Do you remember him? I rest my case!

"Don't worry," he slurs, "I will bring you nice crimsy girls," And please don't ask me what crimsy means! I wasn't sure whether to worry about figuring that out, or why he would refer to "bringing girls" like they were livestock for the slaughter. It just gets worse doesn't it? Nonetheless, a few managed to scale through. "We will groom them," says Elenda.


In Calabar...

Here, the girls are a lot more courteous. Most came as a result of the adverts the Commission had placed in the papers and on the website. There were no awkward agents, but still, many were not equipped to talk about tourism in the State, despite their proximity to the State's tourist's sites. Finally the panellists managed to get just about 25 contestants to put together a good show.

The D-Day- Tinapa Calabar

The 5,000-seater Tinapa emporium I can imagine had not witnessed that kind of traffic since inception. Many a distinguished came in droves to witness this landmark occasion- a first of its kind, the first ever national beauty pageant to be organised by a State Government. It was colourful and effervescent, what with special performances by Awilo Logomba and an outstanding display by the contestants. The carnival colours, green, yellow, orange, red and blue were dramatically represented in the emporium's exquisite decor, not to mention the bright lights dotted all over the emporium and red carpets snaking from the entrance to the stage.


The judges were also there, Senator Florence Ita Giwa, Dr Anthea Esege, Mr Ernest Adjovi, and Mr George Kawaji. With intense training, grooming and an educational tour of the State, there was a remarkably different side to the contestants. "What is your definition of beauty," asks Judge Ernest Adjovi, the brainchild behind the increasingly popular Miss Malaika Beauty Pageant.

"Beauty talks about something that is attractive and wonderful to look at, but real beauty comes from within."

"I am currently writing a book. I have learned so much from Cross River State. Apart from tourist attractions, I have learned that the wife of the Governor of Cross River State has set up a shelter, REFUGE, which takes care of abandoned babies; she also has a passion for empowering women. I believe I will be instrumental in marketing these projects especially as my book in the making addresses some of these issues in our society," said 21 year old International Relations graduate Adeyinka Akeju. She was first runner up.

The winner, Chinenye Uwanaka, an 18 year old student, walked away with a Ford Galaxy Ghia 2.3litre car donated by Coscharis Motors, N2million, tickets to the renowned Trinidad and Tobago Carnival and an automatic entry to the Miss Malaika International Beauty Pageant, which will hold in Nigeria for the very first time since inception, "We are looking for a face, poise and personality of international standard," said George Kawaji. "She definitely fits the bill."

Oh well, I guess we'll all know at this year's Miss Malaika Pageant.

 
Posted by: Enuma Chigbo on 13 March 2009

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