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Dear Man in a Hat – Stop Using the ‘Racist’ Word

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I need to take umbrage at what our esteemed Minister Bheki Cele has done here in this interview with Newzroom Afrika – transcript and Tweet below.

For days we have witnessed how predominantly Zulu people have gone on the rampage – looting, burning and stealing goods in an orchestrated rage loosely based around freeing ex-President Jacob Zuma from his jail in Escourt.

President Ramaphosa was circumspect enough in his address to South Africa on Monday 12 July 2021 to allude to ‘ethnic violence’ – more than likely in an attempt to keep his voting base in Kwazulu-Natal intact by not inflaming those voters hard fought for and won in the backrooms of politics when Jacob Zuma rose above the gravy soup and ensnared the vote in that province to give the ANC a decisive victory.

Frankly I don’t see how we in South Africa still tolerate all of these different ‘grades’ of division and oppression with these soft words like ‘ethinc’, ‘xenophobia’, ‘cultural’, using words like ‘they’, identifying suburbs knowing that certain races or ethnic groups are dominant there etc. BUT for real ‘shock gasp and horror’ effect calculated to stir up tensions (read: gain votes!) our political leaders rush to the RACIST word.

Bheki Cele
Bheki Cele

Anyway – in the interview in Durban – the seat of most of the anarchy and home to the Zulu Nation – Minister Cele characterises the violence as RACIST saying; “… a serious racial connotation which is going to be a problem in the medium and long term and we have to really work hard on reversing that. We can’t allow the racial tensions that you have witnessed here. The men that you have seen here and the roads that are barricaded and the people having pangas and other stuff. This community where we are now is predominantly Phoenix which is an Indian Community, Just next here will be Zwelitsha, Pambayi where predominantly Africans will live. So, the problem of the standoff here is between Africans and Indian origin South African. That needs to be stopped. People have lost their lives, we have lost 15 people here. Police will have to work on that. One thing that we will have to work on that people who murder people will have to be arrested. That cannot be compromised. The second thing is that those people who are killed are still in the mortuary around here and they are even prevented from coming to see and identify their own loved ones. Those are the things that we need to correct. We need to initiate a dialogue between the communities of Phoenix and Inanda.”

My interpretation of what the Man in the Hat above said is basically that he is returning to what works for embattled politicians desperately clinging to the hope that they will stay in power – blame everything on the most divisive word in the world – RACISM.

Shame on you Minister Cele.

Double, Triple and Quadruple shame on you as well for:

  • Only looking at the results of the looting
  • Not offering any form of assistance to communities protecting their own
  • Not condemning the violence and looting outright
  • Appearing to favour the looters by giving their ‘deceased’ more sympathy than the ruined lives of many more law abiding South Africans.

just for the record Bhekokwakhe “Bheki” Hamilton Cele was born in Umzumbe, Hibberdene, Kwazulu-Natal on 22 February 1952. He is the is the South African Minister of the Police after being appointed to the post on 26 February 2018. He was previously the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service until October 2011, when he was suspended from duty, due to allegations of corruption.

Bheki Cele holds a Teacher’s Diploma which qualifies him as a pre-school teacher.

Ward 7 Independent Councillor

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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.