Social media reports say one Miss Laura Iyama has been crowned as Virgin Girl of the Year 2025 at the Iria Festival in Ogu Kingdom, Rivers State, Nigeria, a vibrant cultural event celebrating female virginity through traditional rituals and awards.

The Iria Festival, an annual Ikwerre and Ogoni tradition dating back centuries, features virginity verification by community elders via physical exams and testimonies, emphasising moral values and communal unity in a modern context.

For the ceremony, Iyama was clothed in elaborate green beaded attire, holding a carved trophy amid elders and crowds.

Reacting, a Facebook user, Lucky Osadebe Egbue, said, "GOD bless Laura lyama, just the way I met my wife as a virgin when she was at the age 28 years and she will always be my love till death to us part."

However, Princewill John Ed said, "So many people don't know what it actually means...By that word Virgin girl title... It's just a title that symbolises the ancient culture and story attached to 'the virgin woman'. She isn't a virgin, she only won the title in perfect completion of the cultural requirement, either by Dancing, Wrestling, Cooking or one traditional ritual or the other."

Comfort Ibiye Iyalla said, "After so many years of doing this ceremony yearly, no infrastructure has been built to empower the girl child. The money spent on this alone can sponsor a full skill acquisition that will enhance the girl's life. sad."

ASA