Idols accused of double standards for not firing Somizi Mhlongo

 

Idols has been accused of applying double standards after Gareth Cliff has been fired by the popular talent show following his remarks on Penny Sparrow. It has been revealed that Somizi Mhlongo another Idols judge had posted controversial racist comments against white people after the #Zuma Must Fall march accusing them of wishing to install a white president. Gareth had posted a message saying Penny Sparrow was exercising her freedom of speech when she said Durban beaches are being frequented by monkeys on new years day.

This prompted many calls for Cliff to be fired as an Idols judge.  In the early hours of this morning, M-Net confirmed that Gareth would no longer be part of the panel, not elaborating on the reason, only thanking him for his contribution to the show.  At the time of publishing this article, Gareth had remained mum on social media.  His team has refused to comment on the matter.

According to Somizi this is what he had to say regarding white protesters on #ZumaMustFall:

Racist white South Africans hoping Zuma's fall will give them a white president or bring back apartheid is try denial of the  reality. It's like Oscar believing that he'll one day take part in the olympics. Never. it's like Donald Trump thinking he'll be the next American president. Never. It's like Mercy Pakela believing she'll on day of a duet with Adele. Never. So pls stop taking expired drugs and accept or leave our country. Just cuz you got away with apartheid doesn't mean we can't see you using this Zuma campaign as a shield to hide yo racist bullshit. Nxa."


It later emerged that the pictures were old ones being bandied about on social media as images from the protest. Mhlongo apologised, but public figures including Mark Pilgrim were not happy.
"So the SA Idols judge, Somizi Mhlongo thinks ALL White people want a white president. Dear Somizi. On behalf of the many white people that you so quickly paint with the same brush, we don't care what the colour of the president is. We just want one that is honest and has integrity. Fuck you very much."
 

  Source :  Timeslive