Breaking News: Ufa Dania, the First Plus-Size Contestant in Miss Universe Nigeria, Opens Up on Her Journey
In a recent interview with Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, Ufa Dania, the first plus-size contestant in the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant, shared her experiences and insights on her journey to the pageant. The beauty queen, who represented Kwara state, attributed her popularity among Africans to her having the classic African figure.
"I think a lot of people see themselves in me, especially South African ladies. They saw someone they could relate with on a much deeper level. They saw something in me that other people were not seeing," Dania said.
Dania, who has received massive support from South Africans online, described her pageant camp experience as challenging. "It was quite a lot. To me, it was much more worse than NYSC camp. You wake up by 5am and you don’t sleep until like 12am the next day," she disclosed.
The beauty queen also revealed that wearing high heels for long hours was particularly tough for her. "The heels you have to wear, that was my biggest fear. That was the toughest part for me," Dania said.
Despite the stigma surrounding plus-sized women, Dania encouraged them not to limit themselves and pursue their goals relentlessly. "Never doubt yourself or look down on yourself, never tell yourself that you are not good enough or not pretty enough. You have everything within you that you need to succeed in life," she added.
Dania also admitted that she struggled with anxiety even before applying but decided to face the challenge head-on. "Before I had applied, I was having a lot of anxiety and fear because of the backlash that I could probably get and people’s bias; people believe that beauty only comes in one form. It scared me but I’m someone who tries to do the daring," she said.
The beauty queen is ready to visit South Africa as long as South Africans are ready to fund her trip. "Tell South Africa to send me money, I’ll be there immediately. I’m waiting for them, my passport is with me anywhere I go to, so when they call me to go, I’m out," she said.
In a message to Nigerians and South Africans, Dania urged them to recognize their shared identity and put away whatever has caused this rift. "I just feel like South Africans and Nigerians need to realize that we are all Africans, we are all brothers and sisters. It doesn’t matter whether you’re from Nigeria or Gabon or Côte d’Ivoire. We all share the same type of skin, similar cultures and traditions. We need to keep apart what happened thousands of years ago and focus on now. We need to heal from all the past things that have happened. We may be from different countries but we are still one," Dania noted.
