The Cape Town Regional Court has postponed Chidimma Adetshina’s deportation case to 23 February 2027.
Presiding magistrate Reema Khorana said the matter cannot proceed while her separate review application against Home Affairs is before the Western Cape High Court.
The 25-year-old must remain at her current address and report regularly to an immigration officer until the case resumes.
Why Adetshina’s case was postponed
The postponement centres on Chidimma Adetshina’s separate review application before the Western Cape High Court.
Until that matter is resolved, the Regional Court cannot determine the state’s application for her detention and deportation.
The state argued that Adetshina no longer has valid legal status in South Africa following the revocation of her documents.
State lawyers also alleged that she re-entered the country through Mozambique and said she still holds a South African passport that she has refused to surrender.
Her defence argued that Adetshina was born and raised in South Africa and has taken legal steps to have her status and citizenship determined.
Her lawyers also pointed to her local roots and argued against her being abruptly detained.
Adetshina calls for Ubuntu over xenophobia
Speaking outside court, the former Miss Universe Nigeria said she remained grateful for the opportunity to have her case heard, while insisting that she was born in South Africa and had followed the proper legal channels to have her status determined.
“I remind everyone that I was born in South Africa. I have applied through the proper legal channels to have my status and citizenship determined,” she said.
Adetshina said she believed she had been “treated unfairly and targeted”, but said she would not respond with anger.
“My message is not going to be one out of anger. South Africa is governed by the rule of law, and we should not allow xenophobia and misinformation to determine how people are going to be treated.
“We should all be guided by the spirit of Ubuntu.”
Operation Dudula and March and March protest outside court
Members of Operation Dudula and March and March gathered outside the courthouse and demanded Adetshina’s immediate deportation.
Tensions rose when she left the building nearly an hour after proceedings ended.
Protesters shouted for her to leave the country as family members shielded her while she made her way away from the courthouse.
How Adetshina’s deportation case began
The case traces back to Chidimma Adetshina’s 2024 Miss South Africa run, when she withdrew from the pageant amid backlash over her citizenship.
Home Affairs later accused her mother, Anabela Rungo, of identity fraud. Rungo was detained in February 2025 her the department withdrew her South African documentation in September 2024.
Home said the documents had been fraudulently obtained, making her ineligible to continue residing in the country, according to a Department of Home Affairs statement.
Adetshina went on to represent Nigeria, becoming Miss Universe Nigeria and finishing first runner-up at Miss Universe 2024 — Nigeria’s best placement to date.
With her next court date nine months away, her immigration status remains unresolved.
The citizenship dispute that has followed her since 2024 therefore remains without a final answer.
