News / National
Miss Zimbabwe 2012 contestants languishing in hunger
27 Feb 2012 at 08:37hrs | Views
Miss Zimbabwe 2012 contestants are reportedly languishing in hunger at their bootcamp at Karimazondo campsite in Marondera.
According to The Daily News on Sunday, they have received numerous calls from concerned parents and guardians of the beauty queens in camp claiming the girls are going hungry due to limited food supplies.
A concerned sister to one of the contestants who requested anonymity said they had to send someone with food to the campsite.
"My sister called me and said they were having little meals. If there were little healthy meals it would be understandable but what they are eating is just too miserable," she said.
Other independent sources close to the Daily News on Sunday and linked to the models confirmed these sad developments.
They are reportedly eating sadza and plain vegetables, plain rice with a boiled egg as well as black tea with one slice of bread.
They are reported to be cooking their own meals.
Miss Zimbabwe Trust, organiser of the event, is clearly financially troubled and is constantly crying that the nation has deserted them.
When contacted for comment, Gerald Mashonga dodged the question on reports of hunger in boot camp choosing to focus more on lack of sponsorship.
"I am actually hearing of it for the first time from you.
"What I can tell you is that we are running under the theme of "I Am Zimbabwean" and the girls are being groomed at the camp.
"They have duties they undertake and they are working as a team on certain aspects of the camp. I know everything to do with the bootcamp has been sorted.
"Some people came forward with food donations," he said.
Mashonga added that Zimbabweans have shown lack of care about the national pageant.
"The entire nation is failing us. The whole country is not patriotic enough to realise that it is a national pageant, not an individual one.
"Many people have come onto our website and started insulting the girls. They are being scorned online and I am appalled at this. Many don't care about the girls.
"Companies do not want to come forward. Look at how many companies sponsor soccer. We have a few sponsors. A few artists have decided to help us and we are also trying to approach other government officials who are gender-sensitive," he said.
The national pageant is in financial trouble and very few corporates or individuals are forthcoming.
International modelling bootcamps are camped in different ways from what is being done for the Miss Zimbabwe 2012 pageant.
At the Miss World pageant girls are told to bring just their clothes and personal spending money.
Ever since the pageant was handed to the Trust, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA), there have been several stories on how broke the new organisers are.
There have been suggestions that the Trust should seek funding and different forms of assistance from ZTA but it seems like a missile-throwing situation.
ZTA says they need to be approached first as they do not want to impose themselves on the pageant, while the Trust says they have called on willing sponsors to come on board.
According to The Daily News on Sunday, they have received numerous calls from concerned parents and guardians of the beauty queens in camp claiming the girls are going hungry due to limited food supplies.
A concerned sister to one of the contestants who requested anonymity said they had to send someone with food to the campsite.
"My sister called me and said they were having little meals. If there were little healthy meals it would be understandable but what they are eating is just too miserable," she said.
Other independent sources close to the Daily News on Sunday and linked to the models confirmed these sad developments.
They are reportedly eating sadza and plain vegetables, plain rice with a boiled egg as well as black tea with one slice of bread.
They are reported to be cooking their own meals.
Miss Zimbabwe Trust, organiser of the event, is clearly financially troubled and is constantly crying that the nation has deserted them.
When contacted for comment, Gerald Mashonga dodged the question on reports of hunger in boot camp choosing to focus more on lack of sponsorship.
"I am actually hearing of it for the first time from you.
"What I can tell you is that we are running under the theme of "I Am Zimbabwean" and the girls are being groomed at the camp.
"They have duties they undertake and they are working as a team on certain aspects of the camp. I know everything to do with the bootcamp has been sorted.
"Some people came forward with food donations," he said.
Mashonga added that Zimbabweans have shown lack of care about the national pageant.
"The entire nation is failing us. The whole country is not patriotic enough to realise that it is a national pageant, not an individual one.
"Many people have come onto our website and started insulting the girls. They are being scorned online and I am appalled at this. Many don't care about the girls.
"Companies do not want to come forward. Look at how many companies sponsor soccer. We have a few sponsors. A few artists have decided to help us and we are also trying to approach other government officials who are gender-sensitive," he said.
The national pageant is in financial trouble and very few corporates or individuals are forthcoming.
International modelling bootcamps are camped in different ways from what is being done for the Miss Zimbabwe 2012 pageant.
At the Miss World pageant girls are told to bring just their clothes and personal spending money.
Ever since the pageant was handed to the Trust, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA), there have been several stories on how broke the new organisers are.
There have been suggestions that the Trust should seek funding and different forms of assistance from ZTA but it seems like a missile-throwing situation.
ZTA says they need to be approached first as they do not want to impose themselves on the pageant, while the Trust says they have called on willing sponsors to come on board.
Source - Daily News
