Former Miss Universe Nigeria 2024, Chidimma Adetshina, has appeared before the Cape Town Regional Court to challenge her deportation by the South African Department of Home Affairs.
The court appearance followed an application filed by Adetshina’s legal team, seeking to contest the legality of the deportation process and prevent authorities from removing her from the country while her immigration status is being determined. Her lawyers are expected to argue that the process initiated by Home Affairs does not comply with legal requirements.
Adetshina was reportedly arrested in June after Home Affairs alleged that she had entered South Africa illegally. She was subsequently brought before the court as the dispute over her possible deportation continues.
The legal battle is the latest development in a long-running immigration controversy involving the beauty queen, who was born in Soweto to a Nigerian father and a Mozambican mother.
Before representing Nigeria at the international stage, Adetshina had participated in the Miss South Africa 2024 pageant but withdrew from the competition following controversy over her family’s citizenship status.
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Her withdrawal came after South African authorities launched an investigation into allegations surrounding her mother’s identity and citizenship documents. In August 2024, the Department of Home Affairs claimed that Adetshina’s mother may have been involved in identity theft.
The controversy triggered widespread criticism and social media attacks against Adetshina due to her Nigerian heritage, despite her being born in South Africa and initially meeting the eligibility requirements to compete in the Miss South Africa contest.
She later accepted an invitation to compete in the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant, where she emerged winner and went on to represent Nigeria at the Miss Universe 2024 competition.
At the global pageant, Adetshina finished as first runner-up and was named Miss Universe Africa and Oceania, cementing her status as one of Nigeria’s most recognised beauty queens internationally.
Her legal team is expected to submit an affidavit outlining the steps she has taken to regularize her stay in South Africa as she seeks to stop the deportation process.
NAN
