Miss South Africa contestant, Chidimma Adetshina, whose Nigerian heritage ignited a national debate and a government probe, has pulled out of the beauty pageant on Thursday.
Her decision to withdraw from Saturday’s final followed allegations by the Home Affairs ministry, which accused her mother of fraud and identity theft.
“After much careful consideration, I have made the difficult decision to withdraw myself from the competition for the safety and wellbeing of my family and I,” Adetshina, 23, wrote on Instagram.
Adetshina, a law student, has faced a barrage of xenophobic abuse on social media since being named a finalist in July. Critics, including some cabinet ministers, have questioned her eligibility due to her Nigerian heritage.
The Miss South Africa hopeful has previously explained that she was born in Soweto to a Nigerian father and a South African mother with Mozambican roots.
The controversy prompted an investigation into her citizenship, requested by the pageant organisers.
On Wednesday, Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber announced that the investigation revealed that Adetshina’s mother might have committed fraud and stolen the identity of a South African woman.
The ministry is now seeking legal advice on how this might affect Adetshina’s citizenship status, given she was an infant at the time of the alleged fraud.