Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie is under intense scrutiny after old tweets, some dating back to 2011, resurfaced over the weekend allegedly showing him using the K-word repeatedly.
The controversy gained traction after African Transformation Movement leader Vuyo Zungula reposted screenshots of the tweets and sent a letter to Parliament and the Presidency calling for an urgent investigation and McKenzie's removal from Cabinet, as per Smile FM .
Zungula said that while McKenzie recently defended the coloured community against racially insensitive comments made by podcasters on the Open Chats podcast , there is 'irreconcilable hypocrisy at play.
'These young individuals are not elected officials. They do not wield the power of a Cabinet portfolio. They do not carry the constitutional and ethical obligations that a Minister must uphold at all times. Minister McKenzie does, and yet, the very language he has used in the past mirrors and arguably exceeds the harm of the podcasters' remarks. Being a member of the Coloured community does not exempt him from accountability, nor does it grant him license to demean, insult, and target black people, the demographic majority of our nation,' said Zungula.
Several other political parties have also weighed in. The EFF has demanded McKenzie's immediate removal from Cabinet, saying, 'It is also the height of hypocrisy for McKenzie to demand accountability from others when he harbours the same hateful attitudes. Recently, when podcasters on Open Chats made offensive remarks about Coloured people, calling them 'incestuous' and 'crazy', McKenzie expressed outrage, opened a case against them, and demanded a public apology. While he was right to be offended by prejudice directed at his community, this double standard strips him of any moral or ethical standing to lead on issues of non-racialism and social cohesion.'