Handling Fame: The Story of Victoria Ekpo, Miss NIJ
By Testimony Obadan
There was a rush of excitement reminiscent of when Agbeni Darego made history as the first indigenous African woman to win the Miss World beauty contest in 2001 and that feeling was what resonated among students of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ) twenty years later when Miss Victoria Ekpo Effiong was crowned Miss NIJ, not because she was the first because she was the underdog.
The Underdog
Victoria knew what it felt like to be an underdog, coming from a relatively unknown Gateway Polytechnic and thrust into a different school with a different culture and system, she never knew her fortune was about to change when she was convinced by her course mates to pick up a form for the pageantry which she would eventually win.
Unlike most of her counterparts, she resumed school three weeks to the close of the first semester and had problems navigating the social hierarchy of the school.
“I came to this school and had no idea what to do. I was behind on my classes, I didn’t know anyone from my old school because I was sort of a lone wolf but I persevered and somehow, it has paid off.
“I had quite a number of challenges – I could not catwalk for instance and here, I was with people that had been doing this a lot and many of them were so good at it and I think this sort of gave me a mindset that I could not win.” I never dreamt of winning
“During the preparations for the pageantry, to tell you the truth of it, I never dreamt of winning. I just felt other contestants were better and I never saw myself winning. Though I had it at the back of my mind that I can do this, I just had to believe and have faith that I could be the winner.”
First Time Victorious
For Victoria, this was the first time she was doing any pageantry, she has had a few modelling gigs but never considered herself pageantry material. If anything, the thought of competing, in any event, scared her.
“I never thought of doing pageantry as a career, in fact, a competition was always something that scared me. I never enjoyed competition that well.
"Like I said earlier, I am a lone wolf and anything that warranted me competing was a turnoff but I guess sometimes you have to change to be great.
“I won’t say I won’t do this again because this wasn’t bad but I would love to.”
Managing Fame
“Obviously winning has affected me in many ways. For instance, I talk calmly now because my life is being put through a telescope and everything I do is being observed. “I also watch my step these days, many are looking at what the Queen of NIJ is doing, so they are constantly on the lookout for what I can do, what I can’t and can’t wait to point it out. I am being mindful not to give a terrible impression because in this craft, impression matters.
“Academically too, it has made me sit upright because that’s all that is my priority for coming here.”
The World is Waiting for Victoria Ekpo Victoria is a woman who likes to show and do, rather than talk and do.
“I can’t wait to show the world what I am made of,” she quipped.
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