SCRAP "MISS COMMUNICATOR PAGEANT”-

thinking from my  bedside……………….

When we talk beauty pageants, what immediately comes to mind is "controversy”. These contests over the decades worldwide have been fraught with a myriad of controversies, ranging from drug use allegations againstwinners, to "sex-for-crown" conspiracies as well as default in promisefulfilment to winners on the part of organizers.

A lot of media coverage has been given to some of these controversies in Ghanarecently, especially those that have to do with winners and other contestants, tothe detriment of issues arising on the part of organizers.

Though organizers of such ventures preach positive about the aims and objectives of these pageants, and promise mouth-watering prizes plus incentives for winners and runners up, it becomes another long tale and thug-of -war when it's their turn to fulfil these promises, which sometimes in themselves are too good to be true.

When this happens, who tells the stories of these girls, who put in their all to win such pageants? An attempt to case the 2013 miss communicator beautypageant of the Ghana Institute of Journalism is just one of the many instances of injustice against innocent enterprising young girls and it will paint a clearer and better picture on the whole discussion.

CALL FOR ENTRIES

The women's commission of the Students Representative Council (SRC),traditionally is known to be the brainchild of this whole endeavour.

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While students get into the Institute to pursue their career paths and dreams in the fields of journalism and public relations, the commission invites and persuades girls to participate in the pageant by purchasing some forms and undergoing what they call "rigorous" audition sessions to get a shortlist of ten girls who would compete among each other for the crown.

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The 2013 edition was no different, the commission headed by Miss Freda Dedzie, under the Raymond Yeldidong Bayor-led SRC, organized the contest allowing bold and confident girls to participate at a cost.

Apparently, the commission used a bunch of really cool prizes as a bait to convince otherwise uninterested girls of the institute to jump on board. Notable

 of which included; a car prize, cash of thousand cedis,a smart phone from LG and woodin cloth pieces for some months, for the winner, while two runners up were to get some cash prizes as well as 

clothing from woodin.

These were the motivation of Miss Wendy Assor and nine other girls who participated in the time-wasting and not-too-relevant contest.

PAGEANT THEME

The theme for the pageant was a phenomenal one. It centred primarily on the need to create and increase public awareness of the now common contributor to the sky-rocketing maternal mortality cases in the country; urogenital and obstetric fistula.

Many women due to a number of factors lose their lives to fistulas resulting from delayed and prolonged labour, premature pregnancies and forced deliveries as a consequence, and the like.

This condition has led to the death of many women and has left many more helpless-uncontrolled passing of urine and human waste due to the holes called fistulas created in their repro and urinary 

tracts.

The need for a lead voice who could champion the education drive and the awareness campaign was to be searched, from the competition.

SPONSORSHIP AND FINANCING

Well, the commission made a lot of noise about the whole pageant, publicityand advertisements were all over the place, which presupposed that there was a lot of cash to spend on the event, aside the quota doled out by the SRC.

The plush venue for the finale, the headline artistes billed to pass through and the big name event hostess said it all.
Among the most announced sponsors, was headline sponsor woodin, accordingto the commission, which was to clothe the ladies especially the winner and runners up.

THE SEARCH FOR THAT VOICE (FINALE)

After long weeks of grooming a shortlist of ten ladies for the grande show, andhaving to do extensive research on the whole fistula condition for presentation on the D-day, the contest came off at La Palm Royal Beach Hotel.Despite the

late start of the show, which is a regular feature at many events in Ghanaanyway, it was altogether a good one. Individual presentations by the girls were amazing as well as their talent show and the fashion segment.

The biggest moment of the night came when out of a further shortlist of fiveladies; Miss Wendy Sika Assor was crowned Miss Communicator 2013, by a very capable panel. That voice to lead the charge had been crowned.

Her message was clear and simple. She was going to embark on a massive educational and awareness campaign on obstetric fistula.

AFTERMATH (WHERE ARE THE PRIZES?)

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Many months on after being crowned, I ask, where are the car prize, cash and the clothing from sponsor woodin?
The women's commissioner, the main protagonist in the whole pageant has remained tight-lipped on questions about all the prizes her outfit promised the winner and runners up of the pageant.

Not too sure if there has been a calculated attempt at the commission to embezzle funds which ordinarily were to have gone into awarding the top threecontestants, but it appears the case since 

there has been no communication from Miss Freda Dedzie, the women's commissioner under whose leadership the pageant was organized.

As a result, all the laudable projects, Miss Wendy Assor outlined to be undertaken during her reign have all hit a snag. The Educational drive, theawareness campaign, the commercials, the fund-raising, the hospital visits and donations among others have remained mere thoughts and aspirations.

Numerous attempts by Miss Wendy Assor to get the commission to respond to these concerns have yielded very little results.
Now that her reign is almost over, and surely a new queen will be crowned through another controversy-fraught organized pageant, the questions beg to be asked;

"Who will speak for Miss Assor and many other girls who have been deceived by the commission into participating in a fruitless venture like the miss communicator beauty pageant?"

"Who will make the organizers pay for persuading these girls at the expense of their books, 

efforts and resources into partaking in this discourse?"

PAGEANT IS IRRELEVANT

For all the noise that has been made about this pageant in the past; I believe it is not a worthwhile course for any lady of the Institute to be partaker of.

So long as organizers continue to be dishonest, and sponsors show such high levels of unprofessionalism, there should be a total scrapping of the contest.

Obviously without resources, the queens would be unable to carry out any meaningful project, considering the roles of the miss communicator is also not explicitly defined.

Fundamental doubts however have been cast on the credibility of the institute's pageant in the past, and this does not seem to be a perception that will be erased any time soon. This has created a negative impression among the studentship that Sponsors of the pageant are unreliable.

Until such a time when there is a clear realization of the need and role of a Miss Communicator in the institute, the pageant will remain a mere waste of time, and money.
Almost all pageants the world over have a purpose, but I dare say, that, Miss Communicator Pageant has no purpose, meanwhile I would advise miss Wendy Assor to take serious action against Freda Dedzie and her commission, while discouraging all ladies of the institute from participating in this directionless venture called the Miss Communicator Pageant, now called the Face of GIJ pageant.

Komla Adom.......GIJ