South Africa to revoke Chidimma Adetshina’s mother’s IDs, travel documents

The South African Department of Home Affairs has announced actions to be taken against Chidimma Adetshina, the winner of Miss Universe Nigeria 2024, and her mother, after nearly three months of investigation.

In August, PREMIUM TIMES reported that the department investigated Ms Adetshina’s citizenship status and her mother’s fraud and identity theft.

Ms Adetshina faced criticism from South Africans over her eligibility for the 2024 Miss South Africa pageant due to her Nigerian heritage.

Despite advancing to the pageant’s final stage, her participation stirred public debate on xenophobia and national identity.

Amid the controversies, the department’s investigation into Ms Adetshina’s citizenship status revealed that her mother allegedly assumed the identity of a South African woman.

Following this revelation, she withdrew from the pageant, which Mia Le Roux subsequently won.

However, in an update on Tuesday, the department stated it would cancel both Ms Adetshina’s and her Mozambican-born mother’s South African identity and travel documents.

In its Tuesday report, Eyewitness News, a South African media outlet, said the department Director-General, Tommy Makhode, informed the country’s parliamentary committee about the plan.

Mr Makhode revealed this after the investigation report was submitted to the Hawks, a branch of the country’s police investigating organised crime, economic crime, corruption, and other serious crimes.

Ms Adetshina, who contested and won the Miss Universe Nigeria 2024 pageant after she withdrew from the Miss South Africa pageant, was born in 2001 in Soweto’s Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital to a Nigerian father and Mozambican mother.

Deadline

Mr Makhode stated that Ms Adetshina, currently representing Nigeria at the ongoing Miss Universe competition in Mexico, and her mother did not respond to Monday’s (28 October) deadline to present reasons why the department should retain their national documents.

Mr Makhode added that officials visited a residence registered to Ms Adetshina to locate her mother, who they believe is still in South Africa.

However, Mr Makhode noted that the department could not explain how Ms Adetshina’s mother managed to travel to Nigeria in September to support her daughter during the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant, which she won.

The department’s Director-General highlighted that photographs from the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant, posted on social media, indicate Ms Adetshina’s mother left South Africa during the ongoing investigation.

Meanwhile, South Africa’s acting Deputy Director-General of Immigration, Albert Matsaung, said the passport Ms Adetshina’s mother has been using to travel from Mozambique to South Africa is untraceable.

Mr Matsaung said: “We couldn’t find a trace of the passport she had been using to come to South Africa from Mozambique during the movement to Nigeria.”

Ms Adetshina represents Nigeria and will compete against contestants worldwide at the 73rd Miss Universe pageant, which will be held at Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico.

The reigning Miss Universe, Sheynnis Palacios from Nicaragua, will crown her successor during the grand finale on 16 November.