DA Disciplines Councilor over Racist Remarks


By Ntokozo Sindane    17-Jun-2013 17:20 UTC+02:00 3
President Jacob Zuma (centre) and his wives (from left) Bongi Ngema, MaNtuli Zuma, Tobeka Madiba-Zuma and MaKhumalo Zuma when he celebrated his seventieth birthday. – image - www.timeslive.co.za

President Jacob Zuma (centre) and his wives (from left) Bongi Ngema, MaNtuli Zuma, Tobeka Madiba-Zuma and MaKhumalo Zuma when he celebrated his seventieth birthday. – image – www.timeslive.co.za

According to a report by the Mail and Guardian, the Democratic Alliance has disciplined one of its senior members over racially charged electronic communication. Stanford Slabbert is a DA councilor in the Eastern Cape. He was suspended for sending an offensive email to multiple recipients.

Slabbert did not have kind words to say about President Jacob Zuma. In the email, Slabbert is alleged to have made an unsavory remark about the president’s intellectual capacity. Slabbert said that the polygamist president has more spouses than brain cells. At present, President Zuma has four wives.

In its attack, the email goes back and forth from President Zuma to the ANC. Slabbert blamed the ANC for a generation of “dumb idiots who wait for handouts”. It is not yet clear if Slabbert’s rampage was fuelled by a specific incident involving the ruling party or if it is part of the on-going political rivalry between the Democratic Alliance and the African National Congress.

Slabbert also touched on the HIV issue albeit, not constructively so. In the email, he reverts back to President Zuma saying that he is the leader of a nation where a quarter of the girls who attend school are infected with HIV. Slabbert elaborates that South Africans “spread the disease more than anyone else in the world”.

Athol Trollip, Democratic Alliance provincial leader, spoke on behalf of the opposition party and confirmed that Slabbert has been suspended because of the offensive communication. The DA condemns such behavior and feels that the councilor contravened the policies of the party by making the negative racial remarks.

The DA is currently conducting the ‘Know Your DA’ campaign which aims to educate the public about the party’s previously underplayed role in the struggle against apartheid. Slabbert’s email is not in line with this controversial campaign.



 3 Comments


  1. Sam van den Berg says:

    Well if I express my views about our beloved and intellectually gifted president, it’s just some exasperated old f*rt blowing off steam; but when public representatives do it, it’s a more serious matter.. The DA did the right thing..

  2. louis37 says:

    All his wifes wait for him to die (money,money)

  3. Critic says:

    Another attempt by the DA to look good in the eyes of the public before the elections.

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