Avatar photo

By Citizen Reporter

Journalist


WATCH: Sparks fly at Parly meeting as EFF takes on AfriForum

AfriForum’s Ernst Roets annoyed MPs after he suggested they were not properly representing the interests of South Africans.


AfriForum’s head of policy and action, Ernst Roets, had a heated exchange with MPs on Wednesday while making oral submissions virtually to Parliament on the organisation’s opposition to the expropriation of land without compensation

Roets caught the ire of MPs, especially from EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu and MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi, after he suggested that MPs were not properly representing the interests of South Africans.

“Politicians in Parliament seem to be out of touch with the realities on the ground level. They do not properly represent people because if you ask them what their priorities are, many people in Parliament, surely not all of them, they are completely detached from what the priorities of the people on the ground level are,” Roets said.

ALSO READ: This way and that way: EFF slammed for ‘political flip-flop’

He was responding to a question from committee chairperson Mathole Motshega why AfriForum had approached the United Nations to raise its concerns about the proposed amendment of section 25 of the Constitution.

Shivambu was clearly angered by Roets’ comments and called him a “racist fool”.

“As part of this process, we allow all sorts of characters… including racist children and kids who come and undermine this particular process. That is what we have been doing, listening to absolute nonsense and rubbish from people who are saying that we are not legitimate,” he said.

Ndlozi said Parliament was allowing racists to address it and AfriForum was motivated by racial patronisation.

“Whoever says we are illegitimate, don’t talk to us because we are not scared of you. We are not scared of anything that you can do once you conclude we are illegitimate,” he said.

However, Roets was not deterred by the EFF’s comments. He said he never said Parliament was illegitimate and hit back at Shivambu calling him a “corruption connoisseur”.

Watch the video below of what happened during the committee meeting:

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.

Access premium news and stories

Access to the top content, vouchers and other member only benefits