“SCHOOL IS A WASTE OF TIME”

OGENNA WALTER IS AN ABUJA BASED MODEL AND THE CURRENT MISS TOURISM NIGERIA, 2016. SHE HAILS FROM THE SOUTH, BORN IN THE WEST and RAISED IN THE NORTH. SHE IS A MULTILINGUIST IN MAJOR LANGUAGES IN NIGERIA. A PROPERTY BROKER ENTREPRENEUR, AND UNISEX SALOON OWNER IN ABUJA. IN THIS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH TOPFLYERS MAGAZINE CREW, SHE TALKS ON HER EMERGENCY AS MISS TOURISM 2016.

HOW WAS YOUR GROWING UP LIKE?

It was amazing. My first sets of friends were Muslims, Northerners from Sokoto state to be precise. My first childhood friend was Zainab. I had friends from all across Nigeria. So, it really hurts me to see crisis here and there in the country. Growing up for me, besides being exposed to people of diverse ethnicity, I also have an amazing dad who made sure we had all the exposure we needed. Education was a top notch. By the way, my parents exposed me to good music. I have a mum who was a dress maker, a very patient woman, with my parents; I’ve learnt that nothing in life lasts forever. You have the Ups and Downs. A time came when my dad was not financially buoyant as he used to be but my mum still stood by him. It breaks my heart to see some marriages fail because the man is broke. I’m grateful for my upbringing; People who know me well know that I don’t joke with my parents. My dad is my number one hero and boo while my mum is my “co-gossip” (laughs). I pray they live long to see me prosper and pay them back for everything they’ve ever done for me.

ARE YOU THE FIRST CHILD?

No, I’m the last among four children.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

Due to the nature of my dad’s job then, I attended different primary school. I attended Redeemer’s Nursery and Primary school; I also went to Ajoke International School, somewhere in Ibadan, and a couple of others. For secondary education, I went to Community staff school in Asokoro, Abuja owned by the State Security Service (SSS). I studied International Relations in Imo State University. I am contemplating on furthering my education in International Business and Policy or International Peace and strategic studies for my Masters’ degree.

Am I the only one who thinks school is a waste of time? Let me explain what I mean. I feel certain people just need vocational studies and not really degrees. Yes, education is a basic thing but certain things need to be remodeled to fit the current situation. Take myself for example, I studied International Relations but I have a salon and I’m into properties. It doesn’t just add up. We should try to encourage people to go into what they are passionate about and increase our GDP instead of people waiting for jobs or even salaries at the end of the month. Rather than wait for the government, I feel the SMEs should be encouraged and increased, so that the employees who have now gained skills and technical know-how could also employ others, thereby decreasing the rate of unemployment and dependence on government. That is Oge’s point of view.

HOW OLD ARE YOU?

I’m 25 years old.

HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN YOU WON MISS TOURISM NIGERIA?

I felt blessed and honored. I had different rush of emotions at the same time. I was laughing and crying at the same time. You were there; you saw there were lots of beautiful girls. Most, if not all were my friends. I mean, I give it to the organizers. To have come up top among such beauties is something to be proud of.

WHAT PROMPTED YOU TO CONTEST?

Prior to this time, I had contested in a couple of other pageants. The last one I won was in 2014 in Abuja. I had made up my mind to quit from the pageant world but my friends encouraged me to do it on an international platform. I gave it another thought and the name Miss Tourism came to my mind. It speaks for itself. It further tasked me into thinking of how I could contribute my own quota to the development of my country’s tourism and for that reason I decided to embark on this journey. I thank God that I have been successful and came out as the Queen.

WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THE BEAUTY PAGEANT YOU CONTESTED IN 2014?

I’m sorry, but I really don’t want to talk about it.

WHAT’S YOUR NEXT PROJECT GOING TO BE ABOUT?

Everybody knows I’ll be representing Nigeria in the Miss Tourism World pageant in Malaysia in this year. I hope to come out top, by the grace of God. Being a beauty queen encourages you to have a pet project. There are a couple of things you need to do in order to give back. One of them is something I’ve started before now. It’s called “Empower HER project”. It’s basically about supporting female entrepreneurs, especially those that are into agricultural business, tourism and of course, skill acquisitioning. The second is educational; I’m still working on it, when I’m through, you will be aware of it. The last but not the least is to have a culture village. This is quite different from the museum. If you have more in-depth knowledge of certain things going back into history, that have occurred in Nigeria and Africa at large, the culture village will be there to revive those things, especially languages, that have gone into extinction. You know like people generally say, “you don’t know where you are going to if you don’t know where you are coming from”. So, I want to give my own quota in the preservation of Nigerian heritage, culture and ethics.

HOW DO YOU INTEND TO MANAGE THE CROWN FOR THE NEXT ONE YEAR?

With God on my side and with my amazing management, I think I have nothing to be scared of.

IF YOU HAD NOT CONTESTED FOR MISS TOURISM, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DELVED INTO?

Business.  At least, two of my businesses are still in existence. I have workers who are very dedicated and passionate about what they do. So, if I wasn’t Miss Tourism Nigeria 2016, I’ll still be running my businesses.

DURING YOUR STAY IN CAMP, WHAT DID YOU LOVE MOST?

Pretty much everything, I think I loved the choreography the most because everybody could just dance and let go off the stress. I made amazing friends. Those memories are things I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world

CHALLENGES DURING/BEFORE CAMP

Major challenge was staying away from my business for a week. I have not been away from my business before except I’m not in the country. You know in camp, you wake up 4 a.m and go to sleep like 2 a.m. It was crazy. It was towards the beginning of the month, I had to deal with salaries for my workers and all of that. One day, I actually cried and almost gave up but thank God, at the end, I scaled through.

ARE YOU MARRIED?

One can’t be married or even be in a relationship and still be a beauty queen.

(cuts in) I’m hearing that for the first time

But it’s true, It’s part of the rules except it’s a “Mrs. Beauty Pageant”, you must be single and not with a child. If you’re in a relationship, then you should make it a discreet as possible. Because during your one year reign, you shouldn’t be married or be  in a relationship nor have a child. That’s why some people came up with other pageants like” Mrs.… (For the married)” and “Ms. (for single mothers)”.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE MEAL?

Since when I was a kid, it’s been vegetable salad. besides that, I like roasted yam with red oil, pepper and onions. I also like freshly-made Oha soup.

HOW DO YOU RELAX?

My typical relaxation mood ,…hmmm (chuckles). I enjoy lying in a hot bath tub with a glass of wine and good music playing. It’s heavenly.

WHAT’S YOUR ADVICE TO THOSE THAT WANT TO GO INTO PAGEANTRY?

Focus. Sometimes we get carried away especially when the men tell you how beautiful you are, most of them don’t have futuristic plans for you. It’s high time women begin to think of business and leadership.

I always refer back to what is going on in Brazil, UK and the USA. By the way, I want Hillary Clinton to win because if she does, other people or countries might emulate that. I wish anybody going into pageantry would so with the mind of making a positive change and also encourage intelligent people. It takes a lot to walk on 6 inch shoes and still maintain the smile on your face. Self-control, composure, poise, etc, are all needed.

WORD OF ADVICE TO THE READERS

Believe in yourself. Be focused. For me, I have three major Ps in my life; prayer, passion and persistence. Never give up. Always follow through. Be your brother’s keeper. Keep giving because it always comes back.

COMMENT FOR TOPFLYERS MAGAZINE

I’ve seen the hard copy. You guys are amazing. Permit to say the customer relationship is really amazing. You guys are persistent and also follow up. It’s a good one. God sees your heart and He will bless your handwork in no time. Thank you, Topflyers, for finding me worthy to grace the front page of your magazine. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to reach out to people.