Gareth has been trending for the past few days following an interview he had with DA leader John Steenhuisen and One South Africa Movement member Mudzuli Rakhivhane on Cliff Central.
He has been called out for not giving Mudzuli a chance to freely express her views and also labeling her experiences of racism as "unimportant".
Watch the video below.
When they try to talk over you and tell you that your experiences as a black woman in South Africa do not matter🤦🏽‍♀️. Racism is structural and even operates at a municipal level. The literal definition of black lives don’t matter. 💀 pic.twitter.com/i2KcVzjcCd
On Friday, Nando's tweeted: "We know that you know what happened in the exchange between the panelists on The Burning Platform on 21st October 2021. We are a proudly South African brand that takes the right to freedom of speech very seriously.
"We do not, and will never, invalidate anyone's experiences or condone racism in any form. We are taking this serious matter under review."
The tweet was followed by a statement yesterday, Saturday 23, the company announced its decision to terminate the sponsorship with immediate effect.
The statement read: "There are many instances in which Nando's has not agreed with the opinions of both guests and presenters on Cliff Central, but we have upheld their right to express those views as a core component of a healthy constitutional democracy.
"In the case of The Burning Platform episode aired on [Thursday], Nandos is of the view that Gareth Cliff failed to create an environment where free speech was possible by talking over Mudzuli Rakhivhane and dismissing her view whilst not allowing her to adequately express it."
Nando's said the incident was highly disappointing and "at odds with the reasons that we originally entered into our sponsorship of The Burning Platform more than five years ago. We have made this known to Gareth Cliff and Cliff Central team and have urged them to address this with their audience as a matter of priority."
Another popular show that lost a sponsorship this year is Mac G's Podcast And Chill. Earlier this year Old Mutual issued a statement announcing that it has distanced itself from the podcast following the comments that were made on the show about transgenders and their body parts.
The statement read: "As a responsible business that respects the rights of everyone, we have decided to terminate the relationship with MacG, with immediate effect. We distance ourselves from the harmful commentary against the LGBTQ+ community and humanity at large,
“To say the least, Mac-Gg’s commentary was both ignorant and insensitive, clearly showing that much education needs to happen, especially in a country where people continue to be ostracized, killed, abused, and raped for being who they are."
