|
|
|
|
| Entertainment |
| Society: No Miss Malawi ...3 months before world contest |
|
by
Herbert Chandilanga , 17 June 2006
-
05:22:36
|
The country’s mother of beauty pageants––the Miss Malawi contest––is yet to show itself to the audience three months before the Miss World contest to be held in Poland in September, creating fears among some followers of the event that the Malawi beauty queen might miss the world pageant.
Everyone knows the waiting has been long to see what new blood Okoma Productions will inject into the show after inheriting it from Events Management Limited (EML).
The audience ––overflowing with something more than the cat’s curiosity––has its patience nearly wearing thin, wielding a yardstick and ready to score Okoma’s efforts on it.
But Okoma’s publicist Victoria Msowoya (in the picture) says her outfit is aware of people’s expectations: an improved face of the contest and disclosure of when the pageant will indeed take place.
“All I can say is that it will be soon, so soon,” she says, and adds that: “As far as Okoma is concerned, everything is on the right track and from now the waiting will not be long.”
She says the delay in staging the show is due to the need to follow a procedure that will see the show meet or even surpass people’s expectations.
“We have been looking for girls with good manners, we don’t want girls who have nothing to do and spend time in the streets. Right now, we have about 10 girls registered. These are top class girls with nice ambitions.”
“Some are employed while others are students who would like to be managers, journalists and other things ambitious girls want to become,” says Msowoya.
Fears are that delay would put pressure on the winner as she may have little time to prepare for the 56th Miss World contest to take place in Poland this year. The fears are based on calculations that the Miss World pageant gets under-way in September and that for a Miss Malawi chosen in June to have had prepared enough by then would not be easy.
A couple of weeks ago, Okoma’s director Keith Kulisewa agreed that it may be tough for the winner to cope with the new calendar in line with the Miss World contest “but that planning a proper national event was the first priority”.
“Everything can be done and the queens can well make it to the Miss World contest after being chosen in June,” he held.
He then weighed the chances of the 2006 Miss Malawi’s winner going to Miss World at 50–50.
But Msowoya now believes that “people should rest assured that the winner of the contest will have time to prepare for the Miss World calendar.
“We will surpass people’s expectations,” she says.
Carver Bhima, Director of EML, is one of the people hoping Okoma will do a good job.
“Let’s hope the delay will bring something nice. A lot of people are waiting to see this yearly event. I too am waiting to appreciate the good that will come out,” says Bhima.
He says it his hope that Okoma will bring about inventions and transform the show into a highly regarded one.
“Miss Malawi is a private entity, spearheaded by private hands but there is need to bring in ideas that will make it rich. In 1998, we went to then Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ken Lipenga, to ask for government’s collaboration.
“We asked him if he didn’t think it was nice to have the queen attached to ambassadorial duties. We got a go-ahead and from that year, the one who walks away with Miss Malawi crown gets to be the country’s ambassador,” he says.
“The reason we gave Okoma the go-ahead to takeover management of the pageant was because there was talk that we were not doing enough. The only way [out of this] was to give a chance to a vibrant generation that could do better,” he discloses.
Bhima first oversaw management of the pageantry for seven years under Professional Fashions, a solo effort.
“I was then joined by two other directors and that’s when we worked as EML for three years, until now when we have given the mantle to Okoma.”
“Sponsorship was the main hitch because many people are not ready to support pageants. Traditionally, people don’t like parading girls, to them the idea of doing this sounds foreign and this mentality kills chances of the success of the Miss Malawi show,” he bemoans the attitude.
He points out two things he would like to see change for the betterment of the show in Okoma’s reign.
“The first is if sponsors would open up and help take the show and its winners to highest heights.
“The second would be to see the people change their mentality and accept the idea of having pageants. This is a new age and the pageantry has to go in line with the standards elsewhere in the rest of the world,” he wishes the new management well.
Bhima concurs with Msowoya on the need to take time and work on choosing decent girls that will be ready and able to work for the good of the society.
“The mission is to make sure the queen is disciplined and able to look at all people––from the top to the bottom ranked––with a smile. The queen should be decent and upright. In that way, the whole pageantry becomes rich.”
“I, however, wish Okoma would do something a little quicker, the people are anxious, very anxious,” he observes.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
