Guest house owner called DA leader a ‘little bastard’

DA leader Mmusi Maimane said Sodwana Bay Guest House owner Andre Slade called him a beast and a little bastard.

Maimane recalled this incident yesterday after Slade received a backlash and calls to shut down his KwaZulu-Natal guesthouse following a racist response from the lodge.

A man named Siza who wanted to book the venue had been told in an e-mail from the lodge it would not accommodate black people or state officials.

KwaZulu-Natal Tourism MEC Sihle Zikalala has ordered tourism authorities to investigate the guest house.

Zikalala said the incident‚ coming just after the racism judgment relating to Penny Sparrow, was unacceptable.

Sparrow was ordered to pay the Adelaide and Oliver Tambo Foundation R150 000 for her racist remarks on Facebook

The DA leader called Slade a racist and urged the SA Human Rights Commission to fasttrack an investigation into the establishment’s conduct.

“This matter is also personal to me‚ as the perpetrator has previously referred to me as a beast and little bastard in his online blog‚ revealing his racism in no uncertain terms‚” Maimane said.

“We thus welcome the decision by the SA Human Rights Commission to investigate this case of overt racism.

“We urge [it] to act expeditiously in this matter, to send a clear message to racists and those who engage in racist behaviour.”

Slade stood by his e-mail, saying the Bible stated that black and white people should be segregated.

Maimane said: “Racism‚ and its bedfellows – homophobia‚ sexism and religious intolerance – have no place in our democratic society.” – Additional reporting by Nathi Olifant