AMY-MAE CAMPBELL
After a year of postponing the Mr and Miss Tuks prizegiving, the Student Culture Committee (Stuku) has confirmed that a formal prize handover event for the 2011 pageant winners will take place this Friday.
The winners of the first ever Mr and Miss Tuks pageant – which was held in September last year and was hosted by Stuku – have been waiting for over a year to receive their prizes. Among the expected prizes were beauty hampers as well as a photo-shoot session with the agency Modelling South Africa.
In an article published early in September, Stuku Manager Thabane Mkhwebane told Perdeby that due to unforeseen financial and managerial challenges, they were unable to continue with the pageant this year. However, he guaranteed that this would not exempt Stuku from awarding the winners their prizes.
On 10 October, Mkhwebane confirmed that the situation had in fact been sorted out with the assistance of the university. “Stuku has received direct institutional support in procuring the prizes as well as in the planning and coordination of the handover,” he said.
Modelling South Africa Group CEO Dawie de Villiers and Miss Tuks 2011 Randy Kgodumo have confirmed this statement. De Villiers also agreed to honour their part of the prize agreement and is currently in the process of organising the photo-shoots for the winners as was promised.
Kgodumo explained that she is relieved that the pageant controversy is over and expressed her gratitude towards everyone that assisted the winners throughout the process.
Mkhwebane reiterated the dedication of the whole Stuku committee in realising the promises made to the winners. Mkhwebane said that he contacted each winner individually and explained that separate arrangements have been made for those contestants who are no longer at UP to collect their prizes on the same day as the prize-handover event.
Illustration: Modeste Goutondji
