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Miss Venezuela just overcome 88 different beauty queens from participating countries to emerge Miss World 2013!  She takes over from Miss World 2012 Olivia Culpo from the United States.  Large congrats to her See the questions being asked to her and how she answered them, after the break.

Q  for Venezuela: "What is your biggest fear and how do you plan to overcome it?"

Miss Venezuela: "Fear is not negative. We should overcome all our fears and this in turn would make us stronger As soon as we overcome our fears we can face any challenge."

Q for Philippines: "What can be done about lack of jobs for young people around the world?"

Miss Philippines: "We should invest in education. That is my primary advocacy. Through it we can land good careers in the future. It is the ticket to a better future."

Q for Miss Brazil: "What is your opinion on places who do not allow women to vote, travel abroad?"

Miss Brazil: "In my opinion, we as women achieved our independence through time. Unfortunately nowadays we still have problems with our independence. But we need to keep our open minds because nowadays we are homemakers, part of a work force. We are capable of everything."

Q for Miss Spain: "What is the most significant thing we can do to help elect women into public office?"

Miss Spain: "In order to select a good woman she must posses good qualities in order to do a good job discipline, knows how to adapt... so she can fulfill her job"

Q for Miss Ecuador: "What would happen to the world if we could no longer use the Internet?"

Miss Ecuador: "Computers have advantages and disadvantages. We are no longer as close to our families. We should use technology positively."

TOP 5 FINALISTS: Miss Ecuador, Miss Brazil, Miss Spain, Miss Philippines, Miss Venezuela

Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo struts on stage in a million-dollar swimsuit with 900 stones by Italian brand Yamamay.

International recording artist Emin performs as the top 10 finalists take the stage in their evening gown.

TOP 10: Miss Spain, Miss Philippines, Miss Great Britain, Miss India, Miss Brazil, Miss USA, Miss Ukraine, Miss Ecuador, Miss Venezuela, Miss Dominican Republic.


As Grammy-nominated band Panic! At The Disco gave a breath taking performance the first official round of Miss Universe 2013 - Swimsuit round takes place.

BEST IN NATIONAL COSTUME: Miss Nicaragua Nastassja Bolivar wins best national costume at Miss Universe 2013.
Miss Nicaragu.

Miss Universe 2012, Olivia Culpo takes the center stage.

TOP 16: 1) Costa Rica, 2) Ukraine, 3) China, 4) Ecuador, 5) Great Britain, 6) Indonesia, 7) Venezuela, 8) Dominican Republic 9) Puerto Rico, 10) Spain, 11) USA, 12) Nicaragua 13) Switzerland 14) India 15) Brazil, 16) Philippines.

86 contestants gear up to impress the judges, jury and guests as the stage is set for the 62nd Miss Universe contest.

The contestants shimmy down the ramp in black and red dresses.

The Venue

The hosts, Thomas Roberts of 'MSNBC Live' and Mel B of 'America’s Got Talent' take the centrestage.

The song Clarity plays in the background as the contestants make a grand entry on the stage for the very first time.

The Miss Universe beauties are all oozing with confidence and attitude as tonight is a big night.The atmosphere is electrifying as the contestants walk introducing themselves in alphabetical order.


The judges whittle down the 86 contestants to a final 16.

The finalists will face a question-and-answer round from a panel of judges before the current Miss Universe, USA's Olivia Culpo hands her crown to the new winner.

Miss India Manasi Moghe. (Reuters)

Former beauty queens, celebrities and guests are making a beeline to watch the events at Crocus City Hall, Moscow.

Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo and her boyfriend Nick Jonas walk the red carpet at the 2013 Miss Universe competition in Moscow.

Aerosmith frontman Steven Tylor (R) poses with Paula Shugart, the president of the Miss Universe Organization, along the red carpet.
Miss USA Erin Brady. (Reuters)

Women representing 86 countries vie for the Miss Universe crown held in Russia for the first time.

The glitzy contest is taking place in Crocus City Hall on the edge of Moscow and beamed around the world's television screens to an audience of around two billion people.

The 62nd annual gala, will be hosted by SNBC Live's host Thomas Roberts and America's Got Talent's judge, Melanie Brown or Mel B of the Spice Girls.

A Brazilian has won the 9th Miss International Queen transgender beauty pageant in Thailand, with US and Thai contestants placing second and third. Marcelo Ohio won first prize which included 300 000 baht ($9 677), a crown with real  gemstones and free surgery “for anything” at a famed plastic surgery clinic in Bangkok, organizers said.

Continue after the break.

The pageant held in the beach resort of Pattaya since 2004, ended around midnight Friday. US citizen Shantell D’Marco came second in the beauty pageant, with Thai contestant Nethnapada Kanrayanon placing third.'



Marcelo Ohio of Brazil celebrate with the trophy after winning the International Queen 2013 Transexual beauty contest in Pattaya on November 1, 2013. Twenty-five contestants from 17 countries competed in Pattaya for the Miss International Queen title. AFP PHOTO / PORNCHAI KITTIWONGSAKUL/AFP/Getty Images
Marceki Ohio of Brazil, center, is congratulated by the two runners-up from Thailand Nethnapada Kanrayanon, left, and Shantell D’Marco of the US, right, after winning the crown at the Miss International Queen 2013 transgender beauty pageant in Pattaya, southeastern Thailand Friday, Nov. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)

Marceki Ohio of Brazil, left, is congratulated by Miss International Queen 2012 Kevin Balot of the Philippines, right, after winning the Miss International Queen 2013 transgender beauty pageant in Pattaya, southeastern Thailand Friday, Nov. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)

Abiodun Kazeem is the first graduate to bag the first class grade in the Faculty of Law, University of Ilorin,

If you call him a jinx breaker, you are not far from the truth. The reason is that many students had tried to graduate from the University of Ilorin with a first class degree in Law for many years, but they failed for one reason or the other. Finally, on Tuesday, however, Abiodun Kazeem achieved the feat, drawing accolades from many people.

Continue after the break.

Kazeem studied Common and Islamic Law at the institution, which became a full fledged university in 1976. Achieving this feat, according to him, is something he will always cherish. But he never forgets to note that his march through the system was a tough one.

For instance, he recalls that he did not get admission into the university on a platter of gold. He sat for the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board’s examination twice, in the course of which some of his friends tried to convince him to forget about applying again.

“The first time I sat for JAMB was in 2007,” Kazeem says. “I did not get the cut-off point. But I was bent on studying law. So, in 2008, I obtained the JAMB form and sat for the examination the second time. I was successful this time around.”

Between 2007 and 2008, he worked with one of his uncles, Mr. Tahiru Adeosun, who has a law firm in Ilorin. While the experience might have influenced his academic strides on campus, from his first day in the institution, he had his mind set on obtaining first class degree. Yet, some of his colleagues tried again to discourage him. They reminded him that no one had ever achieved that feat in the institution as far as the faculty was concerned. But he remained resolute.

He says, “From the day I entered the university, I wanted to make a first class. I thought that my experience in my uncle’s law firm could be used to optimise my ability. But some of the challenges I had have to do with the issue that nobody had made it. Some of my colleagues who noted that I was so focused on my studies discouraged me. Many of them said, ‘You can never have it. You do not need to disturb yourself.’’’

Twenty-six-year-old Kazeem, who hails from Iganna in Oyo State, says he is from a polygamous home. His father, Muideen, has 12 children. His mother, Mulika, gave birth to six of them. He states that settling for Law in the higher institution was largely due to the influence of his uncle.

Perhaps, he could have read Mass Communication and not Law. According to him, his nickname in secondary school was Mr. Mass Communication, due to his writing skills and gift of oration.

He recounts his days at Community Grammar School, Iganna. “I decided to read Law because my uncle, a lawyer, inspired me. I wanted to study Mass Communication. I was very eloquent and I was in the Press Club in the secondary school. But when I got to my uncle’s chamber, he influenced and inspired me to read Law. I never dreamt of becoming a lawyer,” he says.

Beaming with excitement and a sense of accomplishment, Kazeem adds that this feat is an honour for his generation and his people in Oyo State.

For now, he is preparing for the Law School, after which he will choose between three directions he has envisioned for himself. He hopes to become a lecturer, to inspire young people, practise Law or participate in politics, either actively or passively.

Kazeem is one of the 41 graduands from various faculties in the university who bagged first class degrees at the ceremony, with 1,088 making second class upper; 2,435 had second class lower. In the third class degree category are 1,082 students and 214 had ordinary Pass.

A further breakdown shows that a total of 5,063 of the 6,713 students that graduated obtained first degrees, 756 got Master’s degrees; 95 bagged Ph.Ds; while 84 got postgraduate diplomas.

Speaking during the grand finale of the convocation on Wednesday, President Goodluck Jonathan, who was represented by the Supervising Minister of Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, frowned on a situation whereby university graduates lack relevant skills due to poor training that makes them unemployable. He said this was intolerable.

He added, “Given this unwholesome development, tertiary institutions ought to make themselves more relevant to solving societal problems and their researches should be more impactful and result-oriented.”

The President said the Federal Government alone could not effectively fund universities in the country. He added that all stakeholders must be involved in cost-sharing to adequately run the institutions.

Noting that university teachers must re-orientate themselves and avoid unnecessary strikes, Jonathan called on striking members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities to call off their lingering strike.

He said the FG would systematically continue to address the challenges in the university system.

According to him, apart from establishing 12 new federal universities, government has also increased the carrying capacities of existing universities to boost access to higher education.

Besides, Jonathan said, the FG had increased the budgetary allocation to education from N234.8bn in 2010 to N426.5bn in 2013.

He added that the government was seriously considering the best ways to ensure the implementation of the ‘Report of the Needs Assessment Committee for Universities’.

The Vice-Chancellor, UNILORIN, Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, said part of the problems facing Nigeria was brain drain and capital flight.

He stated that it would take the doggedness of Nigerians to develop the country to a nation that they would be proud of.

He noted that there were still untapped opportunities in the country, adding that the thinking that Nigerians could only survive abroad was erroneous.

He urged the graduands to be good ambassadors of their parents and their alma mater.

The VC said the institution was making efforts to start new undergradaute programmes in 2014.

He noted that part of the challenges facing Africa and Nigeria was the failure of its brilliant young people not returning to Nigeria after their studies abroad.

He said, “If you travel abroad for more education, be determined that you will assist your country to make a brain gain out of your skills and insights, rather than being part of the brain drain.”