An issue of national pride and honour
OVER the last few days, the personal appeals by Miss World Hopeful, Ms Indra Changa, for assistance in preparing her wardrobe for the beauty contest to be staged in the United Kingdom early in December, must have tugged at the nation's collective heartstrings. And after the sequenced reactions of unbelief, sympathy and outrage, many groups of Guyanese seem to have the expectation that the Government should do something to help this young lady get to England and to put her very best foot forward in this most prestigious of contests. Guyanese have not forgotten it was at the Miss World Contest that this country gained some recognition, when in 1967, the beautiful Miss Shakira Baksh placed third. Shakira went on to a short, but fabulous modelling career, after which she became the wife of British film star Michael Caine, and in true storybook tradition, went on to live happily ever after. Three other beauteous damsels, Alexis Harris, Pamela Lord and Nalini Moonasar placed among the finalists in subsequent Miss World pageants, and in the process managed to keep Guyana in the spotlight as a serious contender in that rarefied realm where beauty and intelligence are sisters-in-arms. From the moment of its birth the Miss Guyana Pageant 1999 has been the subject of controversy. And in the months after the contest, there have been bitter recriminations and cross charges among the members of the contest committee, the franchise holder, the contestants, and the beauty specialists handling Ms Morvina Sobers, who represented Guyana at the Miss Universe contest staged in Trinidad and Tobago. Now, Ms Changa, who was promised the opportunity of representing Guyana at the Miss World Contest in Britain, has been telling the nation through the media, the sorry state of her preparations, her lack of funds, and the fact that she was turned down by the United States Embassy when she applied there for a visa. We are heartened by the news report in yesterday's `Chronicle' that President Bharrat Jagdeo has given Ms Changa the undertaking that he would come to her assistance. We would, however, be so bold as to make two suggestions to the Office of the President. The first is that legal advice be sought on the implications of formally assisting this young lady especially in the area of finances, since it would be somewhat embarrassing for her to be given cash and for that cash to be forfeited as a result of an obscure clause in a forgotten document. Secondly, the Government, through the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Sport, should make it clear to all and sundry that Ms Changa is representing Guyana and that the Government, to some extent, is responsible for her participation in the Miss World contest. As a consequence, the Guyana administration should be meeting all Ms Changa's material needs and should also underwrite the expenses of a suitable chaperone for her during her sojourn in the United Kingdom. Finally, the Ministry of Culture should seek legal advice on establishing relevant criteria for any young lady who wishes to participate in an international pageant under the colours of this nation. Every time a Guyanese is an official representative of this country, he or she becomes an ambassador, who along with their individual aspirations, must always seek glory, honour and pride for this nation.
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