Cederberg councillor faces possible 12-month suspension for comparing EFF to monkeys
Cederberg councillor and former speaker Dr John Hayes could face a 12-month suspension after being found guilty of sharing a video that compared EFF members to monkeys looting a car.
The municipality’s speaker’s office on Tuesday said that council members unanimously backed the findings of its disciplinary committee.
The committee found Hayes guilty of “inappropriate conduct with racist connotations” and had “failed to act in the best interest of the municipality”.
Hayes, a DA councillor for Lamberts Bay, shared the video on Facebook in March 2023.
It showed monkeys clambering over a car, grabbing bags and a hubcap, with captions reading: “Be careful. EFF strike started” and “Looting trend in SA”.
The disciplinary committee also found that Hayes’s actions “compromised the integrity and credibility of the municipality” and “perpetuate racial divisions”.
Though Hayes admitted to reposting the video, he denied it was racist and said he still found it “funny”.
The committee said as a senior councillor, medical doctor, and then-speaker of council, he should have shown better judgment.
“He should have been guarding against such racially charged actions rather than promoting them,” its report stated.
Speaker Maxwell Heins said the outcome followed a two-year investigation.
“SA continues to struggle with its racist past,” he said.
“Public officials must take extra care in how they express themselves on matters of race.
“Hayes acted in such a way that the integrity and credibility of the municipality was compromised.
“Council has proposed Hayes be suspended as a councillor for a period of 12 months, with immediate effect.”
Hayes will remain a councillor with full rights until Western Cape local government MEC Anton Bredell makes a final ruling.
IOL News