Posted by By ‘Nonye Iwuagwu on
Any hope that Uti Nwachukwu had of becoming the next winner of Big Brother Africa was dashed on Sunday as the 26-year-old Nigerian was kicked out of the show.
Any hope that Uti Nwachukwu had of becoming the next winner of Big Brother Africa was dashed on Sunday as the 26-year-old Nigerian was kicked out of the show. It came as a shock to many people that Uti, who believed he had the potential to stay in the house till the last day even if he did not win, was the one who got booted.
Many would naturally assume that the model turned actor would feel disappointed leaving the show at the time he did, but he told Spectacles on the telephone from South Africa, that he left the house at the right time.
Don't get him wrong though. It was not as if he was no longer having fun. It was not as if he was home sick either. But Uti said he was fed up with most of the contestants.
'To be honest, last week, I got fed up. Some of the housemates became sluggish. Some were not ready to do anything. That is why I think it was also good that I left when I did.'
Outside the door, moments after he was evicted, Uti had expressed surprise, saying that some of the tactics he adopted last week were pure strategy. He said he was a little surprised to see who had nominated him for eviction, saying that TK nominated him because he saw him as a threat, adding that he (Uti) would have nominated Mimi for eviction if he knew she had nominated him.
But he would not cry over spilt milk. He is out, but he is excited that he was a part of BBA 3. He told Spectacles that he tried his best at the show and never regretted any of the moments he spent in the house.
He said, 'It was enjoyable. It was lovely. It is not every time you get this experience of staying together with 11 other people from different countries. I had to learn to work with people. I was used to waking up at my own time and doing things by myself. But all that changed when I got to the house. I learnt to greet people.
'In the end, I came out a better person. I don't regret any moment I spent in that house. It was fun all through.'
Much as he said he did not regret being a part of the show, Uti confessed that given another chance, he would turn down being a BBA housemate.
'What! Hell no! I can never be a housemate again! If I am called to anchor the show, I would. If I am called to be a fake housemate in other to stir up things in the house, I would. But to be a housemate in BBA again, no, thanks. I reached my peak in the house and I left at my peak. I don't think I would ever want to go back as a housemate.'
Would he have been able to endure staying in the house for the entire 91 days? Spectacles asked.
'I can not say for a fact. The six weeks I spent was not so bad. I expected what was coming. I knew I was going to leave at the time I did. This BBA3 is the most challenging reality show I have ever seen. You don't know what people are thinking. I can't say what happened. All I can say is that I came to the end of my journey. Hopefully, I think, in fact, I know I did my best.'
Uti said he didn't have any strong competitor in the house. 'I didn't see anybody as weak. I didn't underrate anybody. Honestly, everybody had a strong personality. That was why I didn't take any of the nominations too lightly. The chances were equal for everybody.'
It was believed that while in the house, Uti fell in love with Namibian housemate, Lucille.
But he denied that.
'Love is a very strong word. I liked Lucille and I still like her a lot. I had some feelings for her.'
But he was mad when Lucille was evicted, Spectacles reminded him.
To that, he laughed and said, ' All that was acting joo. I was merely acting. I was doing it for the viewers. If they saw all those emotions and the garaga thing, it would be like, ‘oh, he likes her, they are in love, so let's not vote them out.''
That, unfortunately, did not work for him as he still got booted out.
Surprisingly, Uti confessed that he liked Sheila, the Kenyan housemate, a lot. 'Sheila was my main person. She was the closest person to me in that house. I liked her a lot.'
And for the guys, Uti said he enjoyed Morris' company a whole lot. 'Morris, representing Uganda, is a good person. He had a lot to say. I am somebody who likes to learn. I like to be inspired by wise people. He was very wise and I had a lot of things to learn from him. All the time I had something to say, Morris was the best person to talk to, because he would always listen. I encouraged him to start reading the Bible and then we were work out buddies.'
Being a part of BBA 3 was enough fun and excitement for him, but if Uti had become the eventual winner of the 100,000 USD, the earth might not have contained him. He confessed that much.
'If I had won that money, I would have exploded. Come on! But then, I am still happy being a part of the house. BBA is international. It is not only an African thing. Nigerians are so proud of me all over the world. I had an opportunity to express and expose myself. Hopefully, I advertised myself very well. It was a good coverage for me.'
He plans to take advantage of the exposure BBA has given him. 'I'm very interested in the entertainment industry so I'd like to feature with a couple of artistes, do a couple of movies- not just local, you know, Hollywood-then some fashion shows. I know I will also get big, big contracts. I have done CELTEL billboard before now. I am looking for something bigger.'
BBA has somewhat made him a star, but Uti says he is still the same person he has always been. 'Obviously, there are some things I will not be able to do again since people will now recognise me. I have to conduct myself well. I can't just behave anyhow; people are watching. But I am still going to be the same. As you saw on TV, I am a bubbly person. I try as much as possible to make people happy and I won't change that for the world.'
Recalling how he came into the house, Uti said he had applied for last year's BBA. 'I had filled the forms and applied but I went late for the audition. By the time I got there, they had shut their gates.'
Uti said he felt bad because he had really wanted to be a part of the show.
Probably to be on TV or to be a part of any reality show at all cost, Uti had to enter for the Next Movie Star reality show last year.
'It was fun, though I did not become the winner. I was the first runner up.'
But Uti was still eyeing an international reality show, so he did not relent in his quest for BBA.
'I had to try again. I didn't even know they would call me. A couple of days later, my phone rang. I was like ‘what! I made it for the auditions!' I was so happy.'
But again, his courage nearly deserted him when he arrived for the audition and saw a huge crowd 'I saw a lot of people and I wondered if I would be taken seeing the number of people that came for the audition. I was a bit scared. But I relaxed my mind after the audition, and the next thing, I was called. I was among those that went to South Africa for another audition. I was so happy. I said at least it had given me the chance to go to South Africa. Even if I wasn't picked at the end of the day, I would have had the opportunity of going to South Africa and staying in a hotel and eating good food and enjoying myself.'
Uti said in South Africa, they were put through rigorous mental examinations and were trained in many aspects.
'After everything, I decided to leave everything to God. I felt that if it was God's will, I would be chosen. There and then, they just told me, ‘Uti, congratulations.' I was just jumping around. I was saying God I thank you.'
Uti had known some days before the reality show that he was going to be a housemate, and he was so excited about it. But he said one of the hardest things he had ever done was keeping the information to himself. 'That part was really hard. Nobody was supposed to know about it. I had to lie to my closest friends that I travelled for an international modeling competition. I learnt people were screaming all over when they saw me as one of the housemates, because I hadn't told anyone. I guess it is my time to shine.'
Now that Big Brother is over, Uti should be ready to go back to his girlfriend. To that, he retorted, 'Ha! I don't have a girlfriend o. But chei! I have missed my people! You know how Nigeria is. We are lively people. I have missed the night life. I have missed my family. You know how people relate and bond in Naija; I have missed all that.'
Although he is out of the picture, Spectacles asked Uti who he felt would be the eventual winner.
He said, 'I am going for Ricco as long as he stays away from that Mimi (Ghana). That girl na winch. She has a way of sapping and sucking your energy and making you not to be the best that you can be. I just hope he realises this on time.
'If Ricco does not win, I think Sheila will win. Sheila is so strong. She has that quality of independence. She does not crack under pressure. She is one of the girls that can say what a man can do, a woman can do better. She has a chance if she stays away from TK (Zambia), because he is also sapping her strength.