Posting the old SA flag and making disparaging comments about ANC voters have elicited online outrage against Komani dentist Dr Mogamad Allie Pillay, 37.
ANC Youth League Chris Hani regional secretary Aphiwe Mkhangelwa has threatened to drive Pillay out of town.
Pillay, who is a partner in a practice, posted a picture of Komani before 1994, writing that the town had declined during democracy to become a “s**t hole”.
He claimed this was because the town was ruled by people who lacked intelligence.
He posted: “I don’t care what anyone says, not everyone deserves to be free. I am against freedom.”
Social media was abuzz with angry people calling him a racist.
Pillay denied this, saying that while he did not agree with some of the atrocities which happened under the apartheid flag, especially racism, the old SA had delivered better services, there were more jobs and borders were maintained.
“I believe that whoever did something wrong should be punished. I don’t support the flag based on race but on the work that was done under apartheid. There were services, people were working and our borders were tight,” he said.
He said he was not in favour of apartheid and was against any prejudice based on race.
“I have experienced racism myself twice in my life – in the 12 years I have been in the Eastern Cape,” he said.
Pillay said he received more than 100 threats from people.
“I posted the flag when there was a debate about the apartheid flag and my view is it should not be burnt as I don’t believe that the government should censor what people think about the flag or which flag to use,” he said.
He said the attack against him started after his comment on an Enoch Mgijima municipality post about a shortage of trucks. He posted that people who still voted for the ANC were being unintelligent.
He used a stronger word.
He said: “People launched an attack on me stating that I was racist. They took all these posts out of proportion and generalised my posts. I believe what I said. Nothing has changed since 1994. My beef with the ANC is personal and I don’t see why those who voted for the ANC don’t feel the same.”
Pillay said he did not think his posts were racist, but people had taken them out of context.
He apologised about making a statement about people staying in “f..... Mlungisi.”
“I was making a point as to why vote for the ANC yet you are staying in Mlungisi township,” he said.
Mkhangelwa said they were consulting their lawyers.
“We will mobilise all the victims and everyone who was offended by Pillay…Komani has no place for such hypocrites,” he said.
ANC Enoch Mgijima subregional deputy secretary Malerato Molokoane posted: “In future I would appreciate it if someone could tag me in the posts of Dr Pillay who happens to be a dentist in Queenstown [Komani]. Today’s post from Dr Pillay was the most hurtful and degrading of all his posts I have ever seen. To Dr Pillay, I really wish you should see this post, I would like to remind you that your wellbeing depends on the black communities.“Your intolerance towards democracy and black people is worrying. I’m really hurt.”EFF councillor Luthano Amos said they would rally and unite people to “defend” them from what he called Pillay’s foolishness.When Chuma Kolo wrote sarcastically by asking which party they should vote for, Pillay wrote back: “For competence, services that actually work, no corruption and intelligent people. It’s not rocket science.”Pillay told Daily Dispatch he voted for the Capitalist Party of South Africa.Earlier this week, Afrikaans singer Steve Hofmeyr said that banning something like the old SA flag only made it powerful. “It acquires value.”Early this year, the Nelson Mandela Foundation and SA Human Rights Commission submitted an application to ban the old flag on the grounds that it is a profoundly humiliating and degrading symbol.They sought an order declaring that gratuitous displays of the apartheid-era flag constituted hate speech, unfair discrimination, and harassment based on race.Phumelele Hlathi said he would not use Pillay’s services, to which Pillay said he did not need his business, adding: “Your vote is really bad for business, jobs and livelihoods of your countrymen.”Kolo said: “Thank God he is pulling teeth for a living, God forbid he be placed in a position that requires intellectual maturity or being able to engage with people on issues without being rude and emotional.”Pillay responded: “Pulling teeth for a living? I don't pull teeth darling, too little money. I fix them as in R10,000 a day to fix them.“How much you want to bet that you cannot score higher than me in an IQ or general knowledge test?”..