Guy Murray-Bruce, the national director of Miss Universe Nigeria and president of the Silverbird Group, has stepped up to defend beauty queen Chidinma Adetshina in the wake of the controversy surrounding her. Due to her mixed ancestry and outstanding performance in the competition, Murray-Bruce blames Adetshina’s criticism and accusations to her dual citizenship as South African and Nigerian.
“The only ‘crime’ that Chidinma Adetshina had was that she was a dual citizen, half South African and half Nigerian,” Murray-Bruce said in response to the criticism that has surrounded the pageant. She appears to have done so well in the contest that some people attempted to remove her. I think she was taken advantage of.”
More discussion on nationality, identity, and fairness in pageantry has been triggered by the scandal, particularly in Nigeria, a nation renowned for its rich cultural diversity. Murray-Bruce stated that Adetshina’s treatment is not representative of Nigerian principles and underlined that the country is an open culture that does not tolerate xenophobia.
He went on, “Nigeria is an open society, and we do not practise xenophobia,” emphasising that the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant’s organiser, the Silverbird Group, opposes all forms of prejudice. He demanded that candidates be fairly judged on their qualifications rather than their citizenship or place of birth. Unfortunately, Adetshina’s dual nationality has become a source of controversy. Some have questioned her eligibility, while others have accused her critics of having xenophobic views. Despite this, she received a lot of praise for her performance in the pageant and had a large following.