Newly crowned Miss Tourism, Nyamira County Ms. Bernadette Ogega claims campus boys feared dating her while in college.
The former Masinde Muliro University student leader won the institution's beauty pageant crown in 2017 after reportedly spending millions.
“They all fear me. They fear dating me on grounds that I am too expensive,” says the outgoing MMUST beauty queen.
In a jibe directed to men, Ogega said, beauty queens are not expensive, adding that the narrative a misconception.
She said: "It’s simple, models are not gold-diggers. It’s time men saw us as fellow human beings who need love and affection. I worked hard for the money I spent on the competitions. I didn’t just get it from some sponsor."
When news about her weekend victory in Nairobi reached Nyamira villages, a controversy emerged with residents disputing the outcome.
Tourism and Trade Minister Peter Muga insisted that he was not aware of the competition.
"I am not aware of it. Maybe we ask the director or the chief officer," he said even as assembly Majority Leader Duke Masira demanded to know where and how the event was conducted.
The former MMUST beauty queen is an established business woman with her fortunes traced back during her campus days.
“I got into business in my first year. That was after I received Sh35,000 from the Higher Education Loans Board (Helb). I went to Gikomba market in Nairobi and bought mitumba clothes and ladies’ shoes worth Sh25,000,” said Miss Benita.