Last updated on Jan 28th, 2021 at 12:36 am
Somizi took things a step too far over the weekend after he leaked a journalist’s phone number during a fit of rage. This after more questions were asked about his rumoured divorce from Mohale.
It wasn’t a pleasant weekend for Somizi Mhlongo-Motaung, whose love life filled the pages of Mzansi’s biggest tabloids (not for the first time, either!). The Idols SA Judge made two of the country’s biggest Sunday publications (Sunday World and City Press) and instead of addressing the matters directly, he took his frustrations out on the journalists involved before going on to leak their phone numbers to the public.
“Frustrated” Somizi takes out his anger on journalists
It wasn’t a fun Sunday for Somizi Mhlongo. The Dinner at Somizi’s star woke up to a Sunday World report which claimed that his popular dinner show would not be renewed for a second season until the ongoing court case was settled. A producer named Hastings Moeng opened a case of plagiarism and copyright infringement against the entertainer for allegedly stealing his “Dinner at Somizi’s” idea.
As if that wasn’t frustrating enough, City Press claimed that Somizi and Mohale’s marriage was heading for divorce, claiming that Mohale had cheated on his famous husband numerous times. This report seemed to add fuel to speculation which has surrounded the lovers for much of the festive season; with many suspecting that Somizi has been giving Mohale the cold shoulder.
When the journalist for the second story reached out to Somizi, the Metro FM presenter lost his cool
He then proceeded to leak the contact details for both journalists before sharing an angry Instagram post which read, “So City Press has become a tabloid. To stand a chance to win I don’t know what Dial the number and let Julia know what it feels like to have yo privacy invaded unprovoked”
Somizi slammed for leaking phone numbers
Somizi quickly deleted the post, probably under the advice of his team members, but the damage had already been done. Despite the fact that her phone was immediately flooded with missed calls from Somizi’s fans, Julia Madibogo, the journalist who wrote the City Press article, joked about his outburst as she wrote on Twitter, “Bathong not Somizi giving me so many story tips and unprovoked business so early in the morning… His fans are my vibe though. Funny!”
While she might have seen the funny side of it, many others in the industry did not.
We MUST condemn the incitement of harm and invitation of violence against @Julia_Maite and Sunday World Editor by Somizi (through his followers, who he actually encouraged). For someone who works in an Entertainment industry, his conduct is unbecoming. Shame on him and his flock! https://t.co/hBwr5rN5B4
— (@AkanyangM) January 18, 2021
There are no boundaries here. What he did is wrong. He exposed a female journalist to harassment by giving out his number. Being an entertainment journalist myself, I understand where Julia was coming from. She was just doing her job.
— Hopewell Mpapu (@myemancipation) January 18, 2021
The issue with so called celebrities is that they don’t understand that being in the public eye comes with drawbacks that they should be able to deal with maturely. I know ‘celebrities’ far bigger, who are graceful and mature about handling the media. Tyni sifela ntoni
— Hopewell Mpapu (@myemancipation) January 18, 2021
But Sisters Somizi got it wrong. He should have ignored if he felt it was inappropriate and kept it moving. The insults and encouraging people to harass the Journalist was wrong.
— Sibulele Gwiliza (@S_Gwiliza) January 18, 2021
