Following news that a waiter at the Bungalow restaurant in Clifton may lose his job over a racist incident, the patron who initially complained has publicly accepted his apology and argued against a dismissal on Wednesday.
"I also trust that the internal procedures that are underway are fair and that Mike Dzange will not be at threat of dismissal as it would be very unfortunate, especially at this time of the year," said Scott Maqetuka in a post on his Twitter account.
On Monday morning Maqetuka posted a photo on Twitter of a bill from Clifton's The Bungalow‚ on which the words "2 BLACKS" were printed. Along with the photo Maqetuka‚ tweeted: "The Bungalow in Clifton still sees us by the colour of our skin."
The story has made headlines since. Dzange, a Zimbabwean national who has worked at the restaurant for eight years, appeared on ENCA on Tuesday night, to apologise for the incident. It also emerged in the segment that he has been suspended and could possibly lose his job.
Cape Town restaurants have repeatedly been the centre of allegations of racism, with anecdotal evidence constantly surfacing of black people being denied tables which their white counterparts easily get. It has even led one columnist to create a safe list for black diners where they could be sure to receive a welcome.
Maqetuka initially did not accept the restaurant's apology following the incident, pointing out that they had not bothered to contact him personally. He has since tweeted that the holding company "has issued a personal apology to my partner & I, and have extended an invitation to us for dinner at The Bungalow Restaurant".
Sipho Hlongwane, Huffington Post South Africa blogs editor, has written that these incidents are simply symptoms of structural racism that exists in South African society, and not isolated incidents.
Read the rest of Hlongwane's post here: Dezemba Is Always Going To Be A Little Racist. Here's Why.