JOHANNESBURG - Sports, Arts and Culture Minister and Patriotic Alliance leader Gayton McKenzie has responded to ongoing criticism of his social media posts.
The posts contain several racial slurs, which have caused widespread outrage.
In response, McKenzie posted on X that he can't be accused of racism, but admits he was stupid and a troll.
He apologised for what he's called his 'insensitive, stupid and hurtful' posts, saying he will cooperate with any probes.
Meanwhile, ActionSA has reported him to the SA Human Rights Commission.
It says the remarks degrade and dehumanise black South Africans.
The party says it might also institute private proceedings at the Equality Court.
Several political parties, including the EFF and ATM, are calling for McKenzie's removal as Sports, Arts and Culture Minister.
I can never be guilty of racism, try some other take down but never racism. I did tweet some insensitive, stupid and hurtful things a decade or two ago, I was a troll & stupid. I cringe when seeing them and I am truly sorry for that. I shall subject myself to the investigation.
— Gayton McKenzie (@GaytonMcK) August 11, 2025
"Have I ever called anybody the k-word in my life? Is there anyone who can come up? No, there's not," McKenzie said.
"I had hundreds of thousands of followers when those tweets came out, that day, I was making a point: I hate racism."
"I was making a point, and when I made that point, there was no uproar. Why was there no complaint [then] because now they are changing what I said," he said.