IBADAN, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Shola Anibijunwo has won this year’s edition of Miss Teen Nigeria UK beauty pageant contest, voiceofnaija.ng has gathered.
Anibijunwo defeated three other contestants to emerge winner of 2022 Miss Teen Nigeria UK as well as the award for the most popular contestant on social media.
The beauty pageant was held in London on Saturday, 1 October, to coincide with Nigeria’s Independence Day celebration.
The beauty pageant celebrated rich Nigerian music, culture and creative display.
The highlight of the night was seeing all the contestants as well as invited guest artistes showcasing Nigeria’s culture.
Anibijunwon told the judges that she would use her reigning year to focus on change, help teens suffering from depression as well promote mental health.
Master & Miss Teen Nigeria UK is a platform for Nigerian youths in the UK striving for excellence to showcase their talents and to encourage young contestants to achieve their goals.
It is a cultural pageant that provides a platform where 14 to 19-year-olds are educated on their culture and a place where they can showcase their creative ideas to the wider society.
Each contestant picks a different ethnic nationality which they will research so they can give a performance on the final night of the pageant.
Master and Miss Teen Nigeria UK was established by 25-year-old Mariah Adejokun
with the aim of providing a positive platform for young teens in the United Kingdom.
Adejokun who studied Law said she chose to study it because there were not enough young black females represented in the sector.
She revealed this message in an interview with The PUNCH two years ago.
According to Adejokun, a lot of young people do not know or understand the law and what they are entitled to as citizens of the country.
Having studied law, what inspired Adejokun to start a pageant and not something else, was mainly because of lack of positive role models in the community.
She said: “Society loves to highlight the negatives in our community but I set up this foundation with three main aims: Faith, positivity and encouragement. These are the principles we hope our winners will imbibe.”
In a report, Adejokun described her pageant as a platform for “young disadvantaged Nigerian teens”.
Shedding more light on what she meant by disadvantaged teens, Adejokun stated that being black and African are placed at a disadvantage already.
“Labels have been placed on us by society and people have reinforced certain stereotypes.
“Mr & Miss Teen Nigeria UK takes the youth out of the stereotypes and assists them to achieve higher goals and aspirations.”