Twitter user Tracy Zille, a recently opened account with thousands of followers, raised a huge debate on social media due to potent controversial race-related thoughts.
The account which has clearly ruffled several feathers, roping in celebrities such as Bonang Matheba and businessman Vusi Thembekwayo, has started a fierce conversation in the difference surrounding culture, including race dynamics.
While many even took to radio platforms to discuss the “valid points” the masked assassin Zille had highlighted, the question on everyone’s minds, was who this social media messiah was.
While some argued that the identity of the obvious troll did not matter, the user appears to be fast gaining clout on Twitter streets, raising an eyebrow which has prompted our own investigation.
Links to EFF
According to DFRLab’s Jean le Roux on the thought-provoking site, Medium, the Zille account has been linked to a government official who is a member of the EFF, and has been used to bait racial tensions in order to monetize traffic to the EFF member’s website.
The DFRLab / Le Roux alleges that Anthony Matumba, employed by the Makhado Municipality, has registered multiple websites he monetizes using Google AdSense.
“In order to drive traffic to these sites and increase the ad revenue they generated, several Twitter accounts spammed links to the websites, mostly in reply to prominent Twitter personalities. One of these accounts, @TracyZille, quickly rose to dubious prominence due to the racist tweets it put out in late June 2020.”
The use of racial tensions is nothing new as history highlights a campaign by once British PR firm Bell Pottinger in 2016, where racial tensions were central in some campaigns.
Created on June 29, 2020, Tracy Zille has fast passed over 30 000 followers, posting racial provocative content, but a background search poses numerous links to the EFF member.
Links to three websites provided suspicious links to Matumba, with company registration details from the CIPC implicating Matumba to other websites amplified by @tracyzille.
A short summary of some findings means, revenue generated by any of the sites linked to Matumba would accrue to the same user account, a strong indication that the sites were connected.
“The company details, the website registration, and AdSense information, and the sharing of links to these sites from his personal profile — place Matumba at the center of these websites, and the ultimate beneficiary of any revenue they generate.”
The DFRLab’s investigation poses potent questions around the conduct of the EFF member, who is largely suspected to have used racist rhetoric to propagate disinformation, while also exacerbating existing racial tensions. What would the party say to such conduct by an alleged member of the party?
Questions have been sent to the EFF for clarity on the matter. (An update will be provided once available.)
The TracyZille account has obviously fingered pivotal questions in society that need answering, such as recently posted images of African females in white wedding dresses with a statement:
This is not a White Wedding. It is a European Traditional Wedding for White people. This is our traditional wedding. The question to Black people is WHY DO YOU SPEND SO MUCH MONEY TO BE LIKE WHITES? African wedding & European Wedding wearing White people’s hair. #CoconutsMustFall.”
One of the spin-off Twitter accounts from the original, @TracyZille1, seems to have been suspended, with Zille clearly relishing the idea to inspire provoking thought.
Another suspect behind the account was thought to be provoking controversial Ntsiki Mazwai, who was initially suspected to have been the mastermind behind the account.
Although she did not deny or admit it, she did send cryptic messages fueling suspicions on whether she was behind the account. A further probe seems to lead to a dead end regarding the controversial public figure.
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