Miss Uganda finals

Gulu-born Phiona Bizzu beat 21 others to be crowned the new Miss Uganda for 2012

By Kalungi Kabuye

11.05PM The girls come back in twos and threes, dressed in African wear. Is this where the cut begins? They bare all back on stage now

10.00PM  Finally the girls make an appearance, a dance to a Senegalese song. Twenty of them, quite a large number and they are spread all over the stage. For some reason they are introduced by region, but to very loud applause.

9.57PM  Now Isaac is telling his ‘English’ joke about Leicester, again, but the audience seems to love it. Then on comes Patrick ‘Salvador’ Idringi, becoming one of the most popular comedians in town. Uh oh, where’s Jackie? They announced her but she is nowhere to be seen, so Idringi comes back with more jokes. But no fear, the audience loves him.

SATURDAY 01.00am: And the winner is…. Phiona Bizzu from Lira. 1st runner-up is Josephine Nabakooza, 2nd runner-up Agatha Tuhimbise.

00.54am: And the winner is.......

00.17am: That was a surprising Top 5, no Priscilla, no Sophie, the crowds seems disappointed. But the questions are getting tougher now… and they’ve called back all the other girls, is this it? Are they going to announce the winner? 

00.15am:  A quick reminder TOP 5: Rachel Kirabo, Josephine Nabakooza, Maureen Atulinda, Phiona Bizzu, Agatha Tuhimbise. 

00.10am: Iryn Namubiru is performing now, and what a welcome she got!

Top Five are: Rachel Kirabo, Josephine Nabakooza, Maureen Atulinda, Phiona Bizzu, Agatha Tuhimbise. More questions…

SATURDAY 00.04am: We are now into Saturday. It is getting exciting.

11.55pm: Question time. What everybody’s been waiting for, apparently. First one, Nina, gets the answers right. So does Priscilla, the shortest of the lot. Sophie Amayo, the crowd’s favourite, is up, let’s see how she does. Not bad, she gets it right.

Wow, these girls seem smart, nobody has got an answer wrong. Wait a minute, Nabakooza is not very articulate, pity that. Not a single girl seems to have put a foot wrong.

11.30pm: Now we are down to the Top Ten - Priscilla Atulinde, Nina Mirembe, Josephine Nabakooza, Rachel Kirabo, Rachel Seera, Pauline Apolot, Sophie Amayo, Maureen Atulinda, Agatha Tuhimbise, Phiona Bizzu. The crowd seems to have a liking to Amayo, we’ll see what happens

11.00pm: The girls come back in twos and threes, dressed in African wear. Is this where the cut begins? They bare all back on stage now.

The special categories have been given out now: Sports queen – Maureen Atulinda, Popularity – Effe Nalumansi, Beach wear – Nina Mirembe, Photogenic – Sophie Amayo, Talent – Apolot, Congeniality – Monica Namukaya.

10.43PM  And guess who has just shown up, almost two hours late? The out-going Miss Uganda, Sylvia Namutebi. Must have been a terrible traffic jam, right?

The girls come back in twos and threes, dressed in African wear. Is this where the cut begins? They bare all back on stage now

 10.02PM  Finally the girls make an appearance, a dance to a Senegalese song. Twenty of them, quite a large number and they are spread all over the stage. For some reason they are introduced by region, but to very loud applause.

9.55PM  Now Isaac is telling his ‘English’ joke about Leicester, again, but the audience seems to love it. Then on comes Patrick ‘Salvador’ Idringi, becoming one of the most popular comedians in town. Uh oh, where’s Jackie? They announced her but she is nowhere to be seen, so Idringi comes back with more jokes. But no fear, the audience loves him.

9.49PM  The contestants dancing on stage

9.24PM  Lively performance by the Saba Percussion dance group, as the VIPs finally show up and take their seats. Then a lengthy video about the ‘journey’ of the pageant, never really thought those videos are helpful, kind of boring actually. I understand the need for sponsor messages, but this ‘word’? Nah

9.00PM  We are rolling now, as Jackie Chandiru sings the National Anthem. Emcees are Isaac Rucci and Serrainne Nyamori, and they promptly introduce the judges: Crystal Kavulu, the reigning ‘Mrs Uganda’, Rose Kabaireho, Blanche Majoro, Judith Owembabazi, and the only male judge, tennis player Cedric Babu.


Jackie Chandiru sings the national anthem

8.34PM Okay, doors are open and people are pouring into the Victoria Hall. There was a time the Miss Uganda finals was the biggest social event in Kampala, it is not exactly that anymore but everybody here is dressed to the nines, and photographers are having the time of their lives taking pictures.


Guests arrive at the Victoria Hall for the Miss Uganda Finals 2012

We are running a bit late, seems something’s not quite right with the technical team. The VIP section is still quite empty, but it looks all the tables were reserved, so the wealthy are taking their own sweet time getting here. The other section is almost full, quite a good turn up.

8.12 PM A little bit of trivia, tonight’s queen will be the 26th girl to be crowned as the national beauty. There is still debate about just how many girls have been crowned Miss Uganda. There are claims that the first real Miss Uganda was Beatrice Epenu, crowned in 1969. The others had titles like Miss Independence, Miss Tourism and the like.

7.42 PM Some people in Kampala are still not sure what to once they come across a red carpet, hilarious to see well clad Kampalans trying to dodge the red carpet, and the photo opportunity that comes with it. But glad to say a few are cool with it, and are readily posing for the photographers. Guests are still trickling in, and the cocktail area is fast filling up. A few of the guests have skipped the cocktail and gone straight into the hall, maybe to get a good seat.

7:00 PM: the gates are open and Kampala’s finest are lining up for this year’s Miss Uganda finals. Kampala’s crazy Friday afternoon traffic jam is not helping things, but some clever ones came early. The pre-event cocktail area is already buzzing, and the mood is clearly upbeat. Inside the Victoria Hall, Steve Jean his Fenton Studios crew are putting last touches to the production. So far it’s all looking good.

KAMPALA: After months of regional finals, it all ends tonight as the 26th girl to wear the Miss Uganda crown is unveiled.
 
The finalists are to be attired in designs from House of Zirian, and the winner gets to take home a car and a plot of land among other prizes.
 
Below are the contenders:
 
Agatha Tuhimbise, 22: A student of Organizational Studies, her goal is to bring positive change to Uganda. 
 

Agatha, 22: A student of Organizational Studies
 
Sheila Nuwatwine, 22, Civil Engineer: She says that she deserves to win because she possesses all the qualities required - elegance, intellect and compassion.
 
Rachael Seera, 21: student at Gulu University and winner of the Northern regional competition. 
 
Stella Namugere, 20: Senior 6 vacation, loves modelling, swimming, networking and dancing. 
 
Moreen Atulinda, 23: IT Student at Mbarara University of Science and Technology, winner Western region, plays basketball in the national league. 
 

Moreen Atulinda, 23: IT Student at Mbarara University of Science and Technology
 Eva Nabawanga, 23: Graduate of Mass Communication at Makerere University; looks up to Tyra Banks and all that she stands for in instilling confidence in young women. 
 
Sophie Betty Amayo, 21: Student of journalism, loves travelling, reading and listening to music. 
 
Monica Rukundo, 23: student of International Business at MUBS, loves travelling, swimming and watching movies. Her role model is Maggie Kigozi. 
 
Phiona Bizzu, 19: S6 Vacation, orphaned at a tender age and is passionate about children in similar circumstances and will work hard to improve their plight. 
 
 
Louise Nankabala, 22: graduate in catering and hotel management, runs a restaurant business. Mariam Ndagire is her role model. 
 
Racheal Kelly Kirabo, 21: dreams of conquering the media world just like her role model Flavia Tumusiime is doing. She is outgoing and confident.  
 
Priscilla Atulinde, 19: S6 vacation, winner Eastern region 
 
Priscilla Atulinde
 
 
Monica Namukaya, 23: procurement and logistics officer at Krypton, 2nd runner up from the Eastern regional contest. 
 
 
Effe Nalumansi, 21: student of Economics and Management at Uganda Christian University, looks up to her mother. 

Effe Nalumansi, 21: student of Economics and Management
 
Susan Namirimu, 21: student of Quantitative Economics at Gulu University, 2nd runner up in the Northern regional contest.
 
Nancy Abila, 23: graduate of Social Anthropology and Linguistics, loves making friends and travelling. 
 
Sandra Ayaa, 20: Student of Business Administration and Accounting at MUBS, Brenda Nanyonjo is her role model because of her endurance and hard work.  
 
 
Pauline Peruth Apolot, 24: an established fashion designer and a student at Kyambogo University. 
 
Evelyne Baluka, 23: graduate of Leisure and Hospitality Management, loves travel and adventure.
 
Josephine Nabakooza, 21: loves basketball. 
 
Tracey Gorettie Tambula: student of Social Work and Administration at Uganda Christian University
 
Nina Mirembe, 20: S6 Vacation, loves art and design, singing and looks up to the Nabageraka Sylvia Naginda. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Nina Mirembe
 
 

 

 

The special categories have been given out now: Sports queen – Maureen Atulinda, Popularity – Effe Nalumansi, Beach wear – Nina Mirembe, Photogenic – Sophie Amayo, Talent – Apolot, Congeniality – Monica Namukaya.