Background on Jacinta Ngobese tribalist remarks
Two ActionSA members based in Limpopo approached Now In SA after tweets surfaced from former radio personality and March and March founder Jacinta Ngobese containing tribalist remarks directed at Shangaan and Tsonga people.
As shown in the X thread below, Ngobese was also recorded singing tribalist songs at a protest two weeks ago.
Ngobese is not a member of ActionSA. However, the party has featured her at conferences and partnered with her during anti-immigration protests under the March and March movement, which has recently drawn scrutiny amid rising tensions linked to incidents such as the RDP housing controversy involving a Nigerian national.
The movement has also been associated with figures aligned to ActionSA leadership, including Herman Mashaba’s political positioning in Johannesburg, where immigration has become a central campaign issue.
ActionSA response to March and March leader’s tribalist remarks controversy
Now In SA contacted ActionSA for comment. Matthew George, Director of Communications, responded with the following statement:
“ActionSA thanks Jacinta for tendering her sincere apology for comments she made, which she acknowledged were regrettable. ActionSA will continue to support the important role played by Jacinta and March and March in fighting against the invasion of our country by illegal foreigners.”
The statement made no reference to the specific content of the tweets.
Follow-up questions on ActionSA stance
When asked directly whether ActionSA distances itself from the tweets — screenshots of which were provided to the party — George responded: “Please use my comments as submitted.”
We put two questions to ActionSA in writing:
- Does ActionSA distance itself specifically from the tweets Ngobese issued?
- If not, why will ActionSA not distance itself from comments directed at black native South Africans?
George did not respond to either question.
