WATCH | 'I didn't win out of pity votes, I worked hard': Chidimma on winning Miss Universe Nigeria crown

Newly crowned Miss Universe Nigeria Chidimma Adetshina has addressed the controversy surrounding her win, dismissing claims of “pity votes” saying she worked hard for the victory.

The beauty queen made headlines when she withdrew from the Miss South Africa competition due to a controversy surrounding her citizenship status. She was then invited to compete for the Miss Universe Nigeria title in August and won the crown.

Her decision to embrace her Nigerian heritage has been met with mixed reactions. Some felt that she “robbed” other Nigerian contestants of the crown, suggesting her win was a “pity win” due to her withdrawal from the Miss South Africa pageant.

“A lot of people felt like it was a pity win and I don't think it was. I feel like I really worked hard. Coming from the Miss SA journey, going through the whole experience. It might have been a slight difference compared to everybody else, but I feel like if you look at the journey that we've all been through, I really had the same experience that they did,” Adetshina said in an interview with Arise News.

She joined the competition late but received thousands of votes. 

“It's so weird how the things that are not supposed to be barriers actually are barriers. For instance, I would comment that I'm proudly Nigerian and I'm proudly South African, and I would see in my comments that a lot of people would laugh about it.

“What is really funny about it? Are we not supposed to appreciate one another and accept one another? Just because I have such a diverse background and you might not have that diverse background, that does not necessarily mean that we are so different from each other. We should learn how to educate one another on the fact that even though someone might not be as diverse as you are, we can still come together and learn about each other's cultures. We can still learn from one another, really come together, and be in each other's space while appreciating one another.” 

Born in South Africa to a Nigerian father and a Mozambican mother, Adetshina said she visited Nigeria when she was three years old but stayed there for only a couple of months before returning to South Africa.

She expressed her deep connection to her Nigerian heritage, saying she has always wanted to return to Nigeria.

“I'm really excited to learn the language. I am Igbo, but I don't know the Igbo language. I want to learn, and I'm not saying this now because I’m Miss Universe Nigeria; I've always wanted to, especially in South Africa, where I stayed in Cape Town, which is Nigerian-populated. So, I really felt like I was still in touch with my Nigerian heritage. But now I'm actually more in touch with it.”

She denied claims that when she left the country for Nigeria she was “running away” while being investigated by home affairs.

“I was not running away from any of that. I was just running because I knew I had a dream that I wanted to fulfil. I've avoided that question because it's a legal matter, and I don't have all the facts. But what I can say is that I know I did not steal anyone's identity. I'm still waiting, obviously, for the conclusion of the whole case and the matter, and then moving forward I'll know exactly what to say.”