In a new petition gaining momentum in South Africa, activists are urging Miss Universe organizers to disqualify Nigerian representative Chidinma Adetshina from this year’s competition due to allegations of identity fraud involving her mother, Anabela Rungo.
The petition, launched by Lebogang Shovhote and supported by the activist group Progressive Forces of South Africa, calls for Adetshina’s immediate removal, arguing her participation “tarnishes the integrity” of the international pageant. As of this week, the petition has collected 954 signatures, approaching its goal of 1,000.
The controversy surrounding Adetshina, who is currently in Mexico to compete in the Miss Universe pageant, has its roots in South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs investigation. This investigation led to the recent court-ordered revocation of both her and her mother’s South African identity and travel documents. Allegations against Rungo, a Mozambican-born South African citizen, include charges of identity theft to secure South African citizenship.
Adetshina, born in 2001 in Soweto to a Nigerian father and a Mozambican mother, came into the public eye in August 2024 after her eligibility for the Miss South Africa pageant was questioned due to suspicions surrounding her family’s citizenship status. South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs investigated Adetshina and Rungo, revealing what officials called “irregularities” in their citizenship claims.
According to the Department Director-General Tommy Makhode, “The falsified documentation process involved identity theft committed by Anabela Rungo, posing serious implications for the integrity of South African citizenship.” This led to Adetshina’s withdrawal from the Miss South Africa pageant and her subsequent victory as Miss Universe Nigeria.
Activist Kwena Molekwa and other proponents of the petition claim that social media evidence proves Rungo “stole the identity of a South African child,” a move they argue has caused “devastating consequences” for the South African public.
In their message to Miss Universe organizers, Shovhote warned that Adetshina’s participation could harm the pageant’s reputation, stating, “Not only did this contestant bring her own country into disrepute, but her participation in this iconic pageant would also bring Africa into disrepute.”
South Africa’s acting Deputy Director-General of Immigration, Albert Matsaung, confirmed that officials are investigating Rungo’s recent travel between Mozambique and Nigeria. “We couldn’t find a trace of the passport she had been using to come to South Africa,” Matsaung added. The Nigerian Embassy’s diplomatic involvement in issuing Adetshina a passport, allowing her to compete internationally, has only intensified tensions, with many South Africans expressing frustration over perceived government intervention.
Adetshina is scheduled to compete in the Miss Universe grand finale on November 16, 2024, in Mexico City’s Arena CDMX. Still, the petitioners demand that they expect Miss Universe organizers to “act in the best interests of all contestants, for justice and fairness.”
