Johannesburg Councillor Sparks Outrage with Hitler Remarks in Heated Debate

A Johannesburg city councillor caused controversy by invoking Adolf Hitler during a heated council meeting on Thursday. Tebogo Nkonkou, a representative of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania and Community Development, made the remarks while protesting against pro-Israel symbols displayed by his colleague, Daniel Schay of the Democratic Alliance (DA).

Council Dispute Over Israeli Symbolism

Nkonkou objected to Schay’s Israel-themed attire, which included a tie and a laptop case bearing the Israeli and South African flags. He demanded that the Israeli flag not be displayed in the chamber, arguing that it symbolized the killing of innocent civilians.

“If this is allowed, I will also come wearing a shirt with Hitler’s face,” Nkonkou told Speaker Nobuhle Mthembu. “We want Hitler,” he added, disrupting Schay’s speech.

Members of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) also joined the criticism, with one councilor calling the display of the Israeli flag offensive and comparing Israel to an apartheid state. The chamber echoed with chants of “From the river to the sea, free free Palestine.”

Jewish Community Condemns Antisemitic Rhetoric

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) strongly denounced Nkonkou’s statements, calling them abhorrent and antisemitic.

“These remarks are morally repugnant and legally indefensible,” the organization stated. “For an elected official to invoke Hitler—who orchestrated the genocide of six million Jews—to intimidate a Jewish councillor is deeply offensive and unacceptable. This raises questions about whether such an individual is fit for public office.”

Debate Over Leila Khaled Road Name Change

During the same meeting, DA councillors Lynda Shackleford and Martin Williams attempted to rescind the 2018 decision to rename a road after Leila Khaled, a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is designated as a terrorist organization by several countries.

Williams argued that naming a street after Khaled, who participated in airline hijackings, was inappropriate and contradicted values of peace and freedom.

However, Nkonkou defended Khaled, calling her a freedom fighter and a symbol of resistance against imperialism. Other councillors also supported keeping the name, comparing her struggle to that of Nelson Mandela, who was once labeled a terrorist by apartheid-era authorities.

The motion to revoke the name change failed, with the DA criticizing the decision as ignoring public concerns and prioritizing political agendas over essential services. The SAJBD vowed to continue opposing the renaming, urging leaders to promote unity rather than division.

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