Saturday, 28 December 2019 went down the annals of Cameroon’s beauty pageant that Audrey Nabila Monkam is the first indigene of Bali Nyongha, North West Region to be crowned Miss Cameroon. Financial and material prizes were rained on the 1.8 metres tall Miss. With an ever-present broad smile on the face, she said “I received a 5 million FCFA cash prize, a car, one year lodging in an apartment, 150,000 FCFA monthly salary during my one year mandate, and many other material gifts from sponsors.
From the Warda Sports Complex, celebration took another colour at Bamboo Lounge, an entertainment outfit in downtown Yaounde. With her peers including Miss England, Miss Ivory Coast, Miss Cameroon runners-up, vanquished candidates, and members of the event’s organising committee, Audrey Nabila wined and danced till the early hours of Sunday.
CRITICISM(S)
She woke up to face the reality of a few social media criticisms. Detractors challenged some aspects of Audrey Nabila’s beauty. The beauty queen was, however, fair play. “Everybody has a right to his/her opinion. Some remarks may be true while others are simply false. I smile at the positive remarks linked to my election as Miss Cameroon, and I will endeavour to work on the weaknesses evoked. People who bring your shortcomings to your knowledge love you…,” she noted.
FROM MODEL TO BEAUTY PAGEANT
It is not an “April fool” that Audrey Nabila Monkam was born in Tiko on 1st April 1995. She is not also a newcomer in the fashion arena. “Modelling has been my passion since secondary school, but I was a bit skeptical over some societal vices… Unlike my dad who was very supportive, my mum was opposed to it. But she later took interest and gave me her blessing. Considering my height (1.8 m) and skinny size as treasures, my friends encouraged me to embrace modelling.
But because modelling demanded very skinny persons, I gave beauty pageant a try,” she recalled. Within a short time frame, Audrey Nabila Monkam made breakthroughs and left footprints in the trade. Her records indicate that she is Miss Seme Beach 2017, Miss Earth 2018, 1st runner-up Miss Arts and Culture 2016, and now Miss Cameroon 2020, inter alia. “Keep working,” keep pushing and never give up” consoled the holder of a First Degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Buea when positive results were slow to come.
