Mr Ugly mourns late rival
FORMER Mr Ugly William Masvinu will not partake in any Christmas festivities as he is still mourning his ex-rival Maison Sere.
The late Sere, who beat Masvinu to the title in 2016, collapsed and died at his family house in Mabvuku, Harare, last month.
His death has been linked to drug and alcohol abuse.
Masvinu said the death of Sere will have a negative effect on his “career”.
“Besides being a tout, I also rely heavily on the Mr Ugly contest, which is financially rewarding. Now that Sere is no more, the organisers of the contest might decide to shelve it due to lack of competition,” Masvinu said.
For Masvinu, there is, therefore, no reason for him to celebrate Christmas.
“I am still mourning. How can I celebrate when I know that my future is bleak? I benefitted a lot financially from this competition. Without Sere, chances of having the pageant resuscitated are next to nothing,” he said.
Masvinu will spend Christmas at Mbare Musika, where he works.
“For me, it is business as usual tomorrow. I will be loading buses at Mbare Musika. Those who truly love me will show this by passing by and buying me a bottle or two,” said Masvinu, who is also a comedian.
Since the inception of the contest in 2011, Masvinu has won the title a record five times.
He first won it in 2012, when he dislodged Brian Mateyazondo.
For the next three consecutive years, Masvinu retained the title, before losing it to the late Sere in 2016.
Masvinu then reclaimed the title in 2017, before the pageant was shelved.
The prospect of having the event resuscitated does not seem to excite him.
“I have heard through rumours that the pageant will be back next year. Without Sere, there will be no competition to talk about. It will be a walkover for me,” he said.
Masvinu equated his rivalry with Sere to the contention that existed between musicians Alick Macheso and the late Tongai Moyo.
He challenged more “ugly men” to come forward and compete next year.
“Without new entrants, this competition will die a natural death. I need uglier men to come out of their shells and parade themselves,” he added.
David “Apama” Nyachowa, the Mr Ugly Zimbabwe founder, said Sere’s death is a blow to the arts industry.
“As a player in the arts industry and as the organiser of the Mr Ugly pageant, I urge the Sere family to be strong. His death came at a time when we were planning to celebrate and work with him during the festive season,” Nyachowa said.
“We have lost one of our doyens in the arts industry. I hope God will give us another guy or guys who can fill the gap he left,” he said.