Ntsiki Mazwai: ‘Isn’t it funny how Unathi was fired but Somizi kept the job when he has a real conviction?’

Ntsiki Mazwai has expressed her distaste about Somizi Mhlongo receiving continuous support from publications and broadcasters while the media personality is a convicted sex offender. 

The controversial poet and singer took to her Twitter timeline to question how Unathi Nkayi lost gigs after making false abuse allegations while Somizi was still affiliated with Dstv after the Randburg magistrate's court found him guilty of indecent assault in 2008. 

Aside from the 2008 case, Somizi's divorce from his estranged husband Mohale Motaung was laced with abuse allegations.

“Isn't it funny how Unathi was fired from @dstv Pop Idols for her false allegations but Somizi kept the job when he has a real conviction? Please balance me about the lady who is head of programming at Dstv. Is she targeting only women? Is she the patriarchy gatekeeper?” she wrote.

Directors of the anti-gender-based violence social enterprise WISE Collective, Brenda Madumise-Pajibo and Onica Makwakwa, were also up in arms after Somizi featured on the cover of True Love Magazine with his baby mama, actress Palesa Madisakwane, and his daughter Bahumi.

The two directors penned a letter to True Love editor in chief Makhosazana "Khosi" Zwane-Siguqa and the CEO of Media24, Ishmet Davidson, expressing their grievances. 

“Your coverage of Somizi Mhlongo without him taking accountability for his abuse and violent acts is a clear demonstration of the normalisation, tolerance and minimisation of the harm inflicted on his victims as well as victims/survivors of gender—based violence in general,” read the letter. 

Read the full letter below:

In an opinion piece shared with TshisaLIVE, Nhlamulo “Nota” Baloyi shared the same sentiments about Somizi.

Nota referred to Podcast and Chill losing advertising revenue after a backlash for remarks labelled transphobic in a January 2021 episode, and other penalties many personalities had to face due after abuse allegations against them.

After Somizi's estranged husband made abuse allegations against him in late 2021 in an audio clip published by Sunday World, the media personality was forced to take a break from his Idols SA judging duties ands other work commitments.

Nota weighed in on the matter, saying:  “Accountability culture has been slow-moving in calling out abusers from the LGBTQI community. It appears his return to choreography was short-lived and he’s back to slaying after landing a new TV show on Moja Love as well as returning to judge Idols SA, joined by Boom Shaka’s Thembi Seete and Class of the Choirs champion JR, who will be replacing former judges Unathi Nkayi and Randall Abrahams.

“Somizi has proven himself uncancellable even with the newly gazetted law that will see his name on the published national sex offenders list, which will include non-child sex offenders for the first time. M-Net and the producers of Idols SA are standing by their man in spite of this,” he wrote.