Foreigner again? - South Africans question identity of Miss World South Africa 2026 winner

• Newly crowned Miss World South Africa 2026, Romanda Hombir, has come under scrutiny online, with some South Africans questioning her nationality despite organisers stating she has Swati, Zulu and German heritage. 

• The backlash has reignited memories of last year's Chidimma Adetshina controversy, which sparked a nationwide debate over identity, citizenship and pageant eligibility, eventually leading to her withdrawal from the competition.

• The renewed criticism comes amid growing anti-foreigner sentiment in South Africa, where calls to remove undocumented migrants have increasingly dominated public discourse.

Hombir is set to represent South Africa at the 75th Miss World competition, scheduled to be held in Vietnam this August.

According to the official Miss World South Africa Instagram page, Hombir is no newcomer to pageantry. She competed in the 2024 edition of the contest, where she finished as the second runner-up before eventually clinching this year's crown.

Beyond pageantry, Hombir is an audiologist, motivational speaker, and founder of the Caring Purpose Foundation, an organisation focused on literacy programmes, nutrition interventions, mobile health screenings, and skills training for underserved children and communities.

While the pageant organisers describe her as being of Swati, Zulu, and German heritage, that has not stopped some social media users from questioning whether she is truly South African.

South Africans react online

The backlash has been most visible on X and Instagram, where several users compared Hombir's emergence to last year's Miss South Africa controversy.

A South African blog, Mzansi Farmer, shared a video questioning the decision to crown Hombir. "Another foreigner crowned Miss World South Africa? Romanda Hombir wins the crown, and South Africans are asking the obvious question: Which tribe is she from? Enough is enough."

Another X user, Mr Algorithm, asked, "Miss World South Africa Romanda Hombir. What are her clan names as a South African?"

An X user identified as Alkebu_lan wrote, "Her name is Romanda Hombir. We know nothing about her as South African citizens. I'm sure she doesn't even speak or know any of our SA languages."

Another user, Judaeda Blanco, commented, "Another Chidimma Adetshina."

However, others defended the beauty queen and dismissed the claims.

X user Liwaaiy wrote, "People, Romanda Hombir is a legit South African born in my home province, Mpumalanga, and her dad is German. Let us not 'Chidimma' her. We are safe on this one."

Another user, Fumai Mufakose, added, "Romanda Hombir is South African from Mpumalanga. The surname is South African."

On Instagram, user nonyamekondamase78 commented, "She is not a South African. We don't have this name here."

Another Instagram user, asaanda.x, asked, "Is she a native South African?"

The backlash has revived memories of the controversy surrounding Chidimma Adetshina, who withdrew from the 2024 Miss South Africa pageant after her nationality became the subject of intense public debate. Authorities later launched an investigation into allegations involving her mother's identity documents, a legal matter that remains before the courts. Adetshina subsequently won Miss Universe Nigeria and finished as the first runner-up at Miss Universe 2024.

The renewed criticism against Hombir also comes amid growing anti-immigrant sentiment in South Africa, where calls to remove undocumented foreigners have intensified in recent months.