Idols SA judge and Metro FM presenter, Unathi Msengana, has been suspended from the radion station following a Twitter spat in which she called a Wits student a “psycho bi**h”.
Popular Idols SA judge and Metro FM breakfast DJ, Unathi Msengana, was suspended from her show this week following a twitter rant that was directed at a Wits student.
The twar erupted following an on-air interview the DJ conducted with Stellenbosch University student Anelisiwe Mdube about the documentary Luister, and the student’s experiences of being lectured in Afrikaans.
The hashtag #UnathiBeLike trended as social media users criticised the DJ for not allowing Mdube to properly express her views.
Wits University student, Palomino Jama, tweeted: “Wife gets beaten by husband. Unathi: Why didn’t you become a lesbian? You married him knowing men can be abusive”.
Jama’s timeline indicates that the she received a number of private direct messages from Msengana the next morning.
Unathi smh. Explain to me how she came to this logic comrades? pic.twitter.com/o41MxByugr
— #VotePYA (@ThisIsPalo) August 25, 2015
“You’re a fu**ing idiot if you think so … You are fu**ing delusional if you think you can get personal. Fu** your stupid mind. No amount is going to change our realities. You psycho bi**h. Fu** you twice over,” read some of the messages.
Jama then responded on Twitter with: “Nothing warrants me being fu**ed twice over or being called a psycho bi**h by a woman who is old enough to be my mother. Someone I had respect for.”
SABC spokesperson, Kaizer Kganyago, told Destiny magazine that “the questions she (Msengana) asked on air were valid and there was nothing wrong with her questions. We have no control over DJs and what they do in their private space, but our DJs should know that they are representatives of the brand”.
Following Msengana’s suspension Jama tweeted: “ I am not happy about what has happened to Sis Unathi. I honestly just wish the whole thing never happened.”
Jama told Wits Vuvuzela “I regret the outcome of her being suspended. That was never the intention. Mine is just raising awareness for Luister, clarifying the misconceptions and helping people understand so we can all stand in solidarity evoking change for the Black students of Stellies.”
It is still unclear when, or if Msengana will be returning to her show as the SABC says they first need to discuss the matter with her. Msengana has since released a statement in which she apologised for her reaction on Twitter. “I felt badly violated in my personal life and my personal beliefs … However, as upset as I was at that time, I should not have used offensive language”.
