Newly appointed spokesperson Masechaba Ndlovu has left Mzansi Twitter shocked after she tweeted that 64 people had died from the coronavirus in South Africa.
Ndlovu was recently appointed as Sports Minister Nathi Mthethwa's spokesperson to much fanfare.
Ndlovu had erreoneusly tweeted about a 'death toll', when she infact meant to refer to confirmed coronavirus infections within South Africa's borders.
Ndlovu tweeted on Wednesday morning: The message is unambiguous. People must listen to what the president has said. There is no ‘maybe’, people are dying. The death toll was at 64 yesterday, we now stand at 116”.
She later deleted the tweet and clarified that she had been referring to infections and not deaths. There have been no coronavirus-related deaths in South Africa.
Meanwhile, the twitterati were quick to latch onto Ndlovu's error after some raised questions about her appointment last week.
She has been criticsed in the past for comments she has made about abuse against women. Some users used her error to point at her supposed incompetence as the spokesperson for the minister.
She quickly corrected her earlier tweet: “To clarify, the number of people infected with #CoronaVirusSA now stands at 116". Thank you Twitter family. Let's continue to take the necessary measures to curb the spread of this Virus. My apologies for giving you a fright.”
Some users called for her to be suspended, while others noted that she had made an honest mistake.
Reactions
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19SouthAfrica?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVID19SouthAfricawhereas it’s real deaths #ConspiracyTheories yes, no, Maybe?...
— ZuluSouthAfrican 🕗 (@darealRex1)
Honestly, these are grounds for immediate suspension. There is absolutely no reason for you to be tweeting so recklessly when people are already scared.
— Retired city girl✌🏾 (@M_sankie) March 18, 2020
Who sent you? Aren’t you spokesperson for arts and culture? Who, at DOH, sent you Masechaba? https://t.co/uVShdq7WxL
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19SouthAfrica?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVID19SouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/i8buqHZXSS
— Lerato Pillay (@uLerato_pillay)
It makes sense that Masechaba is rushing to deaths. Her boss specializes in tweeting condolences on this platform.
— Revolutionary (@Common_man18) March 18, 2020
They are practicing..! pic.twitter.com/aqHmNrmFUj
Not even 2 weeks in the Job Masechaba is already sending condolences pic.twitter.com/Of4XmwFUb3
— K U L A N I (@kulanicool) March 18, 2020
You guys make mistakes at work too especially at your new jobs....Masechaba made a mistake too, she's human. We move.
— T (@Themb1) March 18, 2020
What if Masechaba just revealed a state secret? and the follow up tweet is a cover-up?
— Cousama O3 (@CousamaO3) March 18, 2020