A group from South Africa wants Chidimma Adetshina to be kicked out of the International Miss Universe pageant because of claims of identity theft

A group from South Africa wants Chidimma Adetshina, Miss Universe Nigeria, to be kicked out of the contest because she is accused of identity fraud.

The Progressive Forces, a group from South Africa, has started a petition against Chidimma Adetshina, who is currently Miss Universe Nigeria. They want to keep her from competing in the future international Miss Universe pageant. 

Both Adetshina and her mother, who was born in Mozambique, could be charged with identity theft, which has made the group question her eligibility as a candidate.

The South African Department of Home Affairs said on Tuesday that Adetshina and her mother’s South African identity and travel documents would be revoked because there wasn’t enough proof to support the validity of their papers. 

Adetshina quickly got around this problem, though, by flying to Mexico the next day on a Nigerian passport to represent Nigeria in the November pageant.

The Progressive Forces were very worried about Adetshina’s involvement, so they started a petition on Wednesday. It caught on quickly, and within 24 hours, it had over 500 signatures. In an open letter to the Miss Universe group, they asked it to think again about Adetshina’s eligibility, saying they were worried about how it might affect the pageant’s reputation.

It said, “As Progressive Forces of South Africa, we are writing this letter on behalf of everyone who stands for justice to ask Miss Universe as an organization to look again at the contestant Miss Nigeria Universe and, if possible, to cancel her entry.”

The Progressive Forces talked about how important the Miss Universe name is, saying that it stands for “class, integrity, and fair competition.” They warned that letting Adetshina participate could hurt the pageant’s good name and that her participation could make Nigeria and Africa look bad in general.

The controversy isn’t new for Adetshina; she faced similar criticism when she was in the Miss South Africa competition. She finally dropped out of the Miss SA contest after people spoke out against her and signed petitions. Not giving up, she tried something else by promoting her father’s country, Nigeria, and won the title of Miss Universe Nigeria.

As the Miss Universe event gets closer, it’s still not clear what the organization will do about the Progressive Forces’ request. On the other hand, Adetshina’s rise to the world stage is marked by both her strength and the difficult issues that have come up during her campaign.