Monday, May 21 2007

Beauty and brains best describe newly crowned beauty queen Amanda Chedu, who leaves in two weeks to represent Trinidad and Tobago at the Miss Global International Pageant in Jamaica.

Chedu, who was crowned Miss TT Global 2006/2007 last December 16, expressed her passion for performing on stage and exciting an audience. The 19-year-old has been participating in stage productions and dramatic performances since the age of four, when she joined the Love Movement and has been dancing with the prestigious Caribbean School of Dance since.

Chedu also enjoys singing and composing music and even helped co-produce a Soca CD with her younger brother Jonathon by composing the tracks and singing back-up.

The talented beauty is what people sometimes refer to as a “double-threat” and was even awarded the Miss Intelligence title at the Miss Global Pageant.

She is an outstanding student who is currently completing her first year at the University of the West Indies, pursuing her Bachelors Degree in Mathematics and Computer Sciences.

In an interview with Newsday, she said she admires former beauty queens such as Wendy Fitzwilliam, for example, who has continued to accomplish a solid academic background after winning prestigious pageant titles.Chedu said, “Participating in pageants is not a career. You have to approach it like taking a course and learn what you can while you can, though, it can be used as a stepping-stone to new career opportunities.”

The Miss Global representative also encouraged other young beauties to challenge themselves and get involved in pageantry if they felt they had what it takes to become a good ambassador for their country. She also said it is a great way to give back to your country and take up a charitable cause by using the pageant as a forum to address social issues and social ills.

Chedu expressed her concern about the increasing problem of open intimacy and sexual promiscuity among teenagers. When asked for her thoughts about the scandal surrounding 14-year-old Danah Alleyne, who was caught on tape in a sexually explicit dance with international rapper Akon, Chedu said she did not wish to pass judgment on Alleyne but said, “All hope is not lost because she is still young and can bounce back from the experience and embarrassment.”

However, she warned young girls to be careful and not get lost in the sway of their youthfulness only to find themselves lost in a moment of weakness, fuelled by peer pressure. She said she believed young girls should develop a strong sense of self-respect and advised that they look to their family as a positive support system.

The Miss Global International Pageant is scheduled for June 3 in Jamaica, where Amanda Chedu will compete against contestants around the world for the crown.