The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and ActionSA are calling for the Democratic Alliance (DA) councilor to be sacked over allegations of racism.
Members of political parties picketed outside the offices of Newcastle Local Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), demanding the sacking of Connie Hariram.
‘I’m very disappointed’
Hariram, who is councilor 3 in Newcastle, has come under fire for racist remarks he heard in voice notes circulated on a community WhatsApp group.
In the audio clip, a DA councilor can be heard questioning why Abathu Bantu Congress candidate Thandeka Reed was elected to the Indian-majority ward committee.
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“I was so disappointed that I could cry. What some have done has really disappointed me. That woman, Thandeka, was a black woman and we were all Indians there. Who voted for him? Indians.
“The people I’m talking to now, people, family and friends voted for him. I’m very disappointed and I don’t know what to say and what to do,” he said.
Listen to the audio notes below:
Formal complaint
Following the audio leak, the EFF in KZN condemned Hariram’s remarks and called for the councilor’s immediate resignation.
ActionSA also took steps to hold Hariram accountable.
“We have written to the speaker of the municipality demanding to know why he failed to take the necessary action against the racist councilor, because we have been informed that this office was aware of the voice recording in September last year, and received an official letter. complaint from Ms Reed on October 3 2022, which received the acknowledgment of the complaint in writing by Ms Reed, but the office remained silent,” ActionSA KZN Chairperson Zwakele Mncwango said.
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According to Mncwango, Reed reported the matter to the authorities, but there was no progress in the investigation.
“On December 5, the DA’s racist councilors ordered their lawyers to propose an out-of-court settlement and be prepared to pay an undisclosed amount to Ms Reed, which she refused.
“He then reported the matter to the South African Human Rights Commission [SAHRC] However, on December 6, the organization dragged its feet on investigating the matter.
Last week, KZN co-operative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) MEC Sihle Zikalala asked the municipal speaker to investigate the allegations.
‘lack of action’
KZN DA spokesperson, Sthe Ngema said News24 that the party had conducted an investigation into Haririam’s comments. The investigation was completed before the end of last year.
No results have been reported yet.
ActionSA has since referred Hariram to Newcastle Municipality’s ethics committee for “silence and lack of action” by the DA.
“What is most important is the fact that the DA admitted to knowing about the voice recording in October 2022, but he was not silent about it, and also the racist councilor did not face any disciplinary action after admitting to have recorded and shared the voice recording on social media platforms, making people sure the DA is trying to bury this matter,” said Mncwango.
The party has also filed a complaint against the speaker, who ActionSA accused of not doing anything to deal with “this serious matter”.
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