The African National Congress (ANC) in Nkangala have joined nationwide pickets in condemnation of what they refered as racial conduct of tv news journalist, Lindsay Dentlinger.
Part of the pickets at eNCA offices, party members picketed outside the Middelburg High Court on Tuesday carrying placards Corona is not a black virus.
This comes after a video clip, doing rounds on social media, shows Dentlinger interviewing Members of Parliament (MPs) after President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State Of the Nation’s Address (SONA) on February 28.
The journalist instructs black MPs to wear a mask before proceeding with interview while she had no problem interviewing white MPs who did not wear a mask.
The party mobilised its members to stage anti-racism protests in all six constituent local municipalities of Nkangala district.
EMalahleni Mayor Linah Malatjie, who was deployed at Steve Tshwete municipality, told the paper they are a non-racial organisation and were deeply touched and hurt by the incident. “Why eNCA does not see anything wrong with what has taken place,” she said.
“This means that we still have to deal with internal education that has taken place… that kind of attitude shows you we still have a long way to go.”
Malatjie also read from a memorandum which demanded the following:
• eNCA must withdraw the offensive statement in which they defended Dentlinger
• eNCA to send an unconditional apology to all South Africans for the pain and hurt that Dentlinger and eNCA have caused
• Enca to send its journalists and management to human rights training to learn the values of equality and non-racialism
• eNCA must publicly acknowledge its history of mistreating its black journalists, some of whom have been forced out by the racially intolerable conditions at eNCA.
• eNCA to issue an unambiguous commitment that it will no longer tolerate racism within its ranks and to do something practical that will demonstrate genuine remorse on its part.
• The leadership and journalists of eNCA to engage in a process of thorough soul-searching and to confront their own racism and racial prejudice.
The party has given eNCA 14 days to respond to the demands.
