Pretoria - Businessman Pierre Landman has been reported to the South African Human Rights Commission for social media comments, which according to the complainant, bordered on racism.
However, commission spokesman Isaac Mangena said they couldn’t find a record of the complaint, but this did not mean it was not sent.
The complaint was submitted by Inge Pietersen, also of Pretoria, who showed the Pretoria News copies of the letter, accompanied by screenshots.
In the letter submitted to the commission last Monday, Pietersen wrote: “I would like to lodge a complaint against a Mr Pierre Landman.
“I became aware of Mr Landman through his bulldozing of a pristine koppie in Pretoria over Pierneef Ridge, over both privately owned (not his own) as well as municipal ground.
“He began doing so in December 2015. I decided to investigate Mr Landman, and a Facebook search of his page has revealed a number of borderline to fully racist, sexist comments, jokes and statuses.”
The posts were still up on Wednesday, including one which referred to Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and his mother in crude derogatory terms.
Landman said on Wednesday he was probably drunk when he wrote the post about the veteran Zimbabwean leader.
The businessman, who last week clashed with his Villieria neighbours for allegedly attempting to construct a road to his property without permission, did not deny that he wrote the posts.
He told the Pretoria News: “There are a lot of people who hate me. When I get a bad message, I retaliate.”
Landman said he did not necessarily post racist comments on statuses on his page, but was merely giving as good as he got when other people made threats against Afrikaners.
Another post depicted the gallows with a hangman’s noose and the words: “At one time we would hang anyone who plotted to kill us in our own country. Now we give them benefits and a council house. Like and share if you are disgusted.”
Landman also has a picture of the map of South Africa. It is accompanied by the writing: “You are white. You ancestors did not steal this country... they built this country #ReclaimYourStake.”
Another of Landman’s posts reads: “Wat is erger as * swart k****r. * fokken wit k****r met a Bybel onder die arm.” (What is worse than a black k****r. a white k****r with a Bible under the arm).
Landman said he was not aware of any complaint against him, but added he had lawyers who would handle it on his behalf.
“We will handle the matter as it comes. She (Pietersen) can have fun,” he said, referring to the complainant.
Landman said he had about 180 people of different races employed in his various businesses.
He said none of them would ever describe him as being racist.
“There are black people who are high income earners in my company,” he said.
He said these types of complaints against him were lodged by people who were just jealous of him and nothing else.
Pretoria News