By Martha Abua
A former beauty queen, Miss Victoria Ana has confirmed claims of demands of sexual gratification by organisers of pageants in Nigeria.
Miss Ana, who is the founder of ‘Life Begins Initiative’ stated this Sunday in Calabar while speaking on ‘The Dialogue With Agba Jalingo’ a radio program on Hit FM where she averred that most young girls and boys have been subjected to a lot of ills but “don’t like talking about them” due to the dignified nature of the pageant industry.
She also sought for the regulation of the pageant industry in order to protect unsuspecting teenagers from being exploited by organisers of these pageants.
“That is the sad reality that we are facing,” Ana said when asked to comment on claims that contestants and organisers often offer or demand sexual gratification among other things. She continued “These things actually do happen as much as we don’t like talking about them.
“People don’t believe contestants when they come out to say stuff like that because the pageant business is an exalted business. It is something young girls strive to be a part of, people do not know that there are certain ills associated with the business.”
On the regulation of the pageant industry, Miss Ana who had been dethroned as a beauty queen on allegations she described as spurious, posited that most organisers make promises they cannot fulfill and sought for a legislation that will guide the practices in the industry.
“Although many young girls prepare themselves, buy costumes, pay for make-up and buy forms for the contest, however most times the judges have particular candidates they have in mind already,” she said, adding that: “Sometimes, the organisers make promises that they cannot fulfill.”
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