South African police confirmed that EFF MP Kenny Motsamai was arrested and charged during demonstrations against the “racist” Clicks ad in Evaton.
Vishnu Naidoo said Motsamai was arrested in front of the Clicks in Evaton near Sedibeng on Tuesday morning. But he was finally released on bail.
Police Colonel Vishnu Naidoo said Kenny Motsamai was involved in an altercation with law enforcement, after which he resisted arrest. “During the scuffle, the Clicks’ door broke and Mr. Motsamai injured himself at the door,” Naidoo said. Motsamai appeared before the Sedibeng Magistrates’ Court, where he was released on bail. He is charged with assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest. “He will appear in court again on Monday,” he said.
Vishnu Naidoo also said that Motsamai was the only person arrested in the Evaton incident, but nine others were arrested nationwide for disturbing public order, which erupted in Clicks stores amid EFF-led protests.
Motsamai is on parole after spending nearly 28 years in prison for killing a white traffic officer in Rustenburg in 1989. The officer was killed in the middle of a bank robbery, sanctioned by the PAC. The proceeds of the robbery were to assist the PAC in its activities. He was 26 years old when he was arrested and had just returned from Ethiopia after military training. He refused to apologize or show remorse for killing the traffic police officer.
The outrage and action against Clicks began after the company advertised on its website last week showing the hair of a black woman and describing it as “dry, damaged, frizzy and dull” as opposed to a white woman’s hair, which was described as “colorful, fine, flat and normal.
According to the EFF, the advertisement was racist in nature, calling those who approved it to be fired. The party promised to close Clicks stores, while its members engaged in demonstrations. Several Clicks stores were damaged by the angry protesters. Clicks explained that the ad was not theirs, but that of a customer, “TRESemme”, which is owned by Unilever. The company apologized for publishing the ad, withdrew it, and suspended its officials for publishing it.
Source: Afrik
