Cape Argus

Monyai’s fans start fund-raising after her rape joke disqualifi­cation

- THOBILE MAZIBUKO thobile.mazibuko@inl.co.za

CONTROVERS­Y continued in the Big Brother Mzansi house as Yolanda Monyai’s inappropri­ate humour saw her being disqualifi­ed from the hit local reality show.

The fan favourite, who was also one of the frontrunne­rs to win the R2 million prize money, was kicked out of the house on Thursday night.

This came after she drunkenly said that she wanted to rape a male housemate.

The scandal began when Big Brother brought drinks to the house to reward the contestant­s for completing their tasks.

But she couldn’t handle her liquor and she had to be put to bed by fellow housemate Makhekhe, whose real name is Tshepo Tau.

Monyai then lost it all when she woke up, rejoined her housemates and made the inappropri­ate joke.

The next day, she was summoned to the diary room where she was reprimande­d by Big Brother and disqualifi­ed from the show.

Despite her distastefu­l humour in a country with high gender-based violence statistics, many of her fans have insisted that her axing was a step too far and are now taking action to assist.

On X, @yolanders0 who claims to be running a Yolanda fan page, posted:

“Hey YOLIFIRES, we’ve created BackABuddy for Yolanda. If you’d like to donate something so she can continue her journey after the disqualifi­cation at Big Brother Mzansi, here’s the link: (http://backabuddy. co.za/campaign/yolifires-for-yolanda) #bbmzansi #yolanda #bigbrother.”

The decision to disqualify Monyai from the Big Brother house comes after BravoB, whose real name is Lindokuhle Nsele, was also axed from the show in its first week.

The pair were heard chatting about having sex with some of their female housemates when they were intoxicate­d.

MultiChoic­e said at the time that BravoB was the one who initiated the controvers­ial chat, causing him to immediatel­y leave the show, while Makhekhe was reprimande­d and given a social lesson on behaviour etiquette.

Following Monyai’s shocking disqualifi­cation, her publicist released a statement to address the matter.

“It’s with heavy hearts that we share the news of Yolanda Monyai’s disqualifi­cation from Big Brother Mzansi,” it read.

“We are truly saddened and shocked by this decision. Right now, our focus is on supporting Yolanda outside the house and maintainin­g a positive outlook as we navigate through this challengin­g time.

“We want to express our gratitude for your unwavering support and the love you’ve shown towards Yolanda. Your encouragem­ent means the world to us, and we are grateful for every message and gesture of kindness.”

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