The Mail&Guardian newspaper came under attack at the funeral of African National Congress MP Peter Mokaba on Saturday, with the ANC Youth League calling for a boycott.
The newspaper was bent on discrediting Mokaba’s life, Ancyl president Malusi Gigaba told those attending the funeral. ”The newspaper discredited his life, defeating our revolution. We should take action,” he told a packed University of the North stadium at Mankweng outside Pietersburg in the Northern Province.
”I call on the youth and all our people to respond to this infamy by boycotting this reactionary and counter-revolutionary paper.”
On Friday, the newspaper carried a comment entitled: ”The two faces of Mokaba.”
It said ANC leaders had chosen to forget ”tricky issues” of Mokaba’s recent past — such as his views on HIV/Aids.
A few months ago, Mokaba emerged as one of the authors of a controversial ANC document supporting dissident views on Aids. He was recently asked by the ANC to desist from making statements on the topic after he said HIV did not exist and Aids drugs were poisonous.
The newspaper also described him as an alleged spy for the former security police.
”Ironically, some in our country have greeted the news of Peter’s demise with celebration because they have continued to begrudge him for his role in the revolutionary struggle,” Gigaba said on Saturday.
”They hated him for his role in defending so passionately and so wisely the unity in action of the ANC and his role in the building of a new society.”
He said ”small-minded people” have sought to concoct their own twisted version of Mokaba.
”Some such as the Mail&Guardian, have in an unbelievable act of evil, devoid of all sensitivity to both the bereaved and the departed, sought to inflict our grieving hearts with more pain as they wilfully desecrate the image of our beloved leader.
”Every single one of its ink (sic) is spent attacking our movement and its leadership. No, it is not just these they are after, like a real demon, they are after the soul of our revolution.” – Sapa