Special envoy to the United States, Mcebisi Jonas, would likely not be prejudiced in his work because of impolitic comments he had made in 2020 about US President Donald Trump. This is according to Presidential spokesman Vincent Magwenya.
Speaking at an online address, Jonas had called Trump a “racist”, a “homophobe” and a “narcissist”. Concerns have arisen this this will make him an unacceptable interlocutor for South Africa with President Trump’s government.
Magwenya said that many people, including some now serving in Trump’s cabinet had said harsh things about him. “So we believe that President Trump and members of his administration will have an appreciation that in politics, things get said, but that does not mean that people are beholden to those positions.”
He said that “everyone wants to move forward positively and constructively”.
Magwenya added that Jonas’s case was distinct from that of former ambassador Ebrahim Rasool, who had been expelled from the US after having made similar remarks. Rasool was a serving ambassador, while Jonas had made his comments while a private citizen.
“We believe that Mr Jonas will be able to engage at the appropriate level with counterparts and other individuals in the Trump administration of behalf of our government,” he said.
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