MEC to have final say on expulsion of councillor
THE DA in Nelson Mandela Bay was dealt a massive blow yesterday when the council resolved to fire one of its councillors, Chris Roberts, for his alleged racist utterance when calling the UDM’s Mongameli Bobani a “bobbejaan”.
The council decision has to be ratified by Local Government MEC Fikile Xasa before Roberts is officially relieved of his duties.
This could result in a by-election in Roberts’s Ward 7.
The DA was on the receiving end of the ANC and minority parties’ wrath at yesterday’s council meeting, where it was taken to task for its perceived leniency towards racism.
Shortly before the meeting began, some DA members danced and waved placards in front of the Raymond Mhlaba sports centre in Motherwell, blasting their leaders for not firing Roberts and, instead, expelling former DA councillor Knight Mali.
They claimed Mali was persecuted and fired for speaking out about racism within the party.
Some of the placards read: “#Baboon spirit must fall”, “#Chris Roberts must fall”, “#Trollip a farmer must fall”, “Maimane a racist apologist”, and “#DA not serious on racism”.
A DA activist from Wells Estate, Mbuleli Kralo, said: “Councillor Roberts was given a slap on the hand by getting a R10 000 fine . . .
“[DA leader] Mmusi Maimane must take racism seriously. He says one thing but goes and does the opposite.”
Roberts, who was found guilty by the DA of bringing the party into disrepute and was demoted and fined R10 000, did not attend yesterday’s council meeting.
He could not be reached for comment. His wife, Barbara, said the councillor had no comment.
The ANC launched a hate speech case against Roberts in the Equality Court’s Port Elizabeth division last week, calling for his utterances to be declared racist and for him to pay a R500 000 fine.
Shortly after the council meeting started, ANC councillor Lawrence Troon lashed out at the DA for replacing Mali with Kabelo Mogatosi, who moved to the Bay from Rustenburg six years ago.
“Is it possible for people who are not staying in this metro to come here and be sworn in as a councillor?” Troon said.
“Aren’t there any other people that the DA have? What they’re actually saying is that they have a vote of no confidence in the people of Nelson Mandela Bay.
“They are bringing people from Bedford and the North West.”
This angered the DA members, who staged a walkout, returning after about 10 minutes.
Speaker Maria Hermans, who was tasked by the council to investigate Roberts’s conduct for his “bobbejaan” slur, said she had appointed a committee of councillors to look into the matter.
The committee comprised ANC, DA and COPE councillors.
They concluded that Roberts could be heard saying “bobbejaan” in reference to Bobani.
Hermans told the council that Roberts was guilty of the offence and recommended that he either be issued with a formal warning, be reprimanded, issued with a fine, or that Xasa be requested to remove him from the council.
ANC councillor Fikile Desi said the community at large was “in pain” as Roberts’s slur had touched a chord.
“You’re touching a black chord. Of course, we don’t feel that the DA respects a black man,” Desi said.
“What we know as true is that the DA wants to exert its power on black people. They still think of us as baboons.
“We’re very clear that we cannot sit and crack a joke or laugh with a person who regards us as baboons.
“We want to elevate this matter to the MEC to relieve councillor Roberts of his duties so he can go and learn some manners.” COPE
councillor Mzwandile Hote said the racist utterance could never be accepted.
“COPE supports the notion that the councillor must be punished . . . The councillor should be totally removed from this council,” Hote said. “This should be a lesson to all in this council.” DA caucus leader councillor Retief Odendaal said he had only been in Grade 2 when Nelson Mandela was released from prison and was, therefore, not able to fully comprehend the atrocities of the past.
He pleaded with the other parties to build bridges in the Bay and promote reconciliation.
“What unfolded is totally unacceptable and it can never be condoned,” Odendaal said.
“On that day [when Roberts made the comment], I immediately started disciplinary action against councillor Roberts and he was fined and relieved of senior positions.”
He asked Hermans to obtain a legal opinion on the matter as her recommendation did not include the section of the Code of Conduct that was allegedly transgressed.
“This document is incompetent . . . I request that you obtain a legal opinion on this to err on the side of caution,” Odendaal said. But none of the other parties agreed with him. Independent councillor Andile Gqabi said: “The DA should be honest on this matter. They should show council that racism should not be accepted.
“South Africa is taking the issue of racism very seriously, and I think a fine is not enough.” Troon said it was in the DA’s DNA to be racist. Odendaal said there was no reason to attack the party, which was the most diverse in South Africa.
“Where the ugly issue of racism raises its head, it’s dealt with swiftly,” Odendaal said.
ANC chief whip Litho Suka said the DA was a haven for the “conservative verkrampte”.
“We are of the view the DA is using the black votes to return white supremacists to power,” Suka said.
“When one of us is called a baboon we also feel the pain. That is why we decided to wear black as ANC councillors.
“We do so as a symbol of protest [at] the humiliation the black people suffer at the hands of these white racists.”