UNISA law student crowned 1st princess at Miss South Africa 2015
 Unisa LLB student, Refilwe Mthimunye (right), was crowned
first princess at Miss South Africa 2015. Also pictured is second princess,
Ntsiki Mkhize (left), and Miss South Africa 2015, Liesl Laurie (centre) |
Chatting to the Unisa news team on Monday, an
excited Mthimunye said even though winning was the aim of every contestant, her
pageant journey has led her to believe and understand that everything happens
for a reason.
“I’ve been preparing and waiting for this night for so long now. And when I was standing on stage and watching all the ladies, I realised that we were all so deserving of the title. It was such an honour to be on stage alongside all of them. It was also an incredible feeling to see my family and friends there and to have all of them there to support me.”
An
advocate in the making
Mthimunye, from Bronkhorstspruit in Tshwane, is currently
doing her third year in LLB Law at Unisa, and said her immediate plans include,
among others, getting back to her studies. In addition, Cell C, as the pageant
sponsor, has offered the contestants jobs within the company, something
Mthimunye views as a great opportunity – one that she is going to pursue
immediately, hopefully in their legal department.
Her ultimate goal is to become an advocate, and through this, raise awareness on the continuous abuse against women and children in South Africa. “My decision to study law was informed by my desire to positively influence the direction of the country’s judicial system and to also be the voice of my fellow South Africans that don’t understand their basic rights and lack fundamental needs. I’ve always believed in stewardship and I’ve always been passionate about leaving my environment and community better than how I found it.”
In addition, she and Miss South Africa 2nd princess,
Ntsiki Mkhize, share the same conviction about abuse against women and children
and hope to work together soon to create awareness and address this issue.
More
than just 1st and 2nd princesses
Mthimunye said she is also grateful to Sun International, another sponsor of the pageant, as they have indicated that from this year the Miss South Africa runners-up will also be more involved with the pageant brand, accompanying the winner on various initiatives around the country. “I am very excited about this because I want everyone in the country to know and understand that first and second princesses have a lot to offer and that these are not just titles.”
On her mentor, Miss South Africa 2001, Vanessa Carreira, she said: “Vanessa has been amazing. We’ve clicked from the moment they told me that she would be my mentor. I loved how we see eye to eye on everything and she was so focused on everything and the tiniest of details. As a result I was so prepared for the competition, and I wasn’t even nervous on the night.”
Having always wanted to be Miss South Africa, Mthimunye says the experience of being a finalist has been phenomenal. “I’ve learned and grown so much in a short period of time, and we have met amazing people during our workshops, such as Advocate Leslie Sedibe, a person who I’ve looked up to for a long time. Being a finalist has reaffirmed the fact that I want to be a woman of substance.”
Thank you Unisa
Mthimunye said studying at Unisa has given her the opportunity to be financially independent and receive an education at the same time. “This is a university that is allowing me to follow my other dreams and interests while pursuing my studies and my goal of becoming an advocate. I want to thank everyone at Unisa who has supported me, as well as fellow contestants Busi (Unisa economics student) and Taryn (Unisa alumna). We are proud Unisa students and we just want to say thank you for acknowledging us.”
Now that the competition is over and done with, the Unisa news team asked Mthimunye what the one thing is she would love to eat that she missed the most during the pageant time. “Spur spare ribs,” she answered. “I am a meat lover and those spare ribs with the sauce, there is nothing like that anywhere else,” she concluded.
*By Rivonia Naidu-Hoffmeester