Sasco implores Dlamini to retract ‘I love Hitler’ remarks

JOHANNESBURG: The South African Students Congress (Sasco) has appealed to ousted Wits Student Representative Council (SRC) president Mcebo Dlamini to retract his “I love Hitler” comments.

Lwando Majiza, the provincial secretary of Sasco Gauteng, told Cape Times sister newspaper The Star yesterday: “We have asked Mcebo to retract because we believe that his comments are not in line with Sasco’s constitution, its principles, policies and beliefs.”

He said Dlamini had the right to make such comments in his personal capacity, but as the Wits SRC president this was careless.

“Whereas we believe that Mcebo was well within his individual rights to make such utterances in the spirit of freedom of speech. We strongly believe that he was not only irresponsible and careless as a leader of students from various beliefs and background…

“We believe that once a person joins an organisation and is deployed or elected as a leader, they lose some of their personal liberties and subject themselves to the guidance of collective beliefs, aspirations, principles and policies,” Majiza said.

He added that Sasco would be meeting its Wits University branch and the SRC later today to discuss the matter.

The Star also spoke to Dlamini, who said he had not received any directive from Sasco to retract any of his statements.

“From where I stand, I will take this as rumours and part of media propaganda,” he said.

Majiza said Sasco had also demanded that vice-chancellor Professor Adam Habib reinstate Dlamini as SRC president.

“We will also not allow Professor Adam Habib to opportunistically exploit the situation in order to appease his financial handlers.

“Professor Habib should be reminded that the days of authoritarian rule are over. Our institutions are people’s sites of struggle,” he said.

Habib responded that “any decision regarding the reinstatement of Dlamini as SRC president would be determined by the finding of the independent appeals and review committee… The matter is now in the hands of the chairperson”.