Cape Town - The ACDP in the Western Cape has come out in support of the mayor of George, Melvin Naik, whose anti-gay comments sparked criticism.
ACDP Western Cape leader Ferlon Christians said Naik had expressed his personal views, which should be respected.
“He spoke out against the event that was held in George. He is the mayor of George and has the right to his own views.
“We cannot deny the mayor a chance to speak his mind, when we proclaim that we are upholding freedom of speech,” Christians said.
But the Western Cape DA condemned Naik’s remarks on Heartbeat FM last week regarding the Boston Gay Choir Concert held at the Conville Community Hall in George on Tuesday night.
Naik said on air that it was “high time we take a stand (for) what is right”.
Christians said they were not against gays, but don’t agree with some aspects of the practice.
“No one is preaching hatred towards the gay community. We accept them like we accept everyone else because we are all created equal before God. But there are aspects that we don’t agree with as a party.
“We also cannot be hypocritical where we advocate freedom of speech but take action against people for expressing their personal views,” he added.
Naik said: “I heard that it will go out under the banner of the George municipality, but as the mayor of George I want to state that due to my Christian conviction and belief system… the concert does not carry my approval.”
He added: “I am saying this without being judgmental or discriminating against anyone. This is my Christian conviction and I am saying that I am not giving my approval to this concert. All that I can do is bless these men and I will keep on praying for them.”
DA Western Cape leader Bonginkosi Madikizela said Naik’s views did not represent the views of the party.
Madikizela said the concert was received with a lot of enthusiasm from the community.
“Concerts like the Boston Gay Choir is good for the local economy, as it provides people with jobs,” Madikizela said.
“No public representative of the DA can make a decision to exclude or discriminate against any member of our society based on his/her personal views,” he said.
He added that James Selfe, the DA federal executive chairperson, would be referring the matter to the their federal legal commission for further investigation.
@JasonFelix