Girl crowned Miss Heritage hours after losing granny
A few hours before Malawi hosted its first ever Miss Heritage on Friday, one of the contestants got news of her grandmother’s passing.
After giving it much thought, Tionge Munthali braved herself to contest and won the pageant.
“Yes, my grandmother died. I got the news just before the show,” she said in an interview on Sunday morning.
and 1st Princess Rejoice Kauseni
The 22-year-old is a third-year banking and finance student at Malawi Assemblies of God University.
Said Munthali: “What inspired me to do Miss Heritage Malawi is the fact that it has everything in line with what I believe in: one can be a woman of beauty and brains and still embrace one’s heritage.
“Miss Heritage is a great platform to contribute towards promoting Malawi’s tourism, women empowerment and our beautiful heritage.”
She said she expects to reach out to as many people as possible while holding the crown, including through community service where she would encourage the girl child to stay in school.
Having become Malawi’s Miss Heritage, Munthali will contest at the Miss Heritage Global in South Africa on December 4.
The winner of the Miss Heritage Global will get $10 000 (about K7.3 million).
“I believe when starting a race everyone has an equal chance of winning. So, the competition in South Africa might be stiff, but Malawi has beautiful cultures, beautiful heritage sites. Put all that together, with God and hard work, chances are I will do very well,” said Munthali.
Representatives from about 70 countries are expected to participate at this year’s Miss Heritage Global and Munthali plans to take advantage of their presence to sell Malawi.
She said: “It is awesome to have 70 countries under one roof because it is the best way to showcase the different cultures and beliefs of respective countries to the world.
“So, I will use this to our advantage and make sure every contestant goes back to their country with knowledge of any of Malawi’s heritage.”
Munthali scored highly in all aspects, including confidence and presentation.
The event was sponsored by Kwik-Fit and Sun Gold. n
