The appointment of Jonas has raised eyebrows after he referred to Trump as a ‘racist’ and ‘homophobe’ .
The Presidency said it does not believe that US President Donald Trump is a man who holds grudges, as it defended the decision to send former Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas to the US as a special envoy.
The appointment of Jonas has raised eyebrows after a video of Jonas resurfaced in which he referred to Trump as a “racist”, “homophobe”, and “narcissistic right-winger” during the 11th Ahmed Kathrada Foundation Annual Lecture in 2020.
Speaking to the journalists on the sidelines of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s visit to the Eastern Cape and meeting with Premier Oscar Mabuyane, Magwenya said Jonas made those comments in his private capacity.
Magwenya said that at the time Jonas made his comments, he was not the ambassador or a special envoy,
“There is a distinct difference between Ambassador Rasool’s comments in his capacity as ambassador and the comments Mr Jonas made when he was a private sokonnect. We believe that members of the Trump administration will be able to differentiate this issue contextually.
“We believe that Mr Jonas will be able to engage at the appropriate levels with counterparts and other individuals in the Trump administration on behalf of our government,” he added.
WATCH Vincent Magwenya saying that Donald Trump will not hold grudges
[WATCH] Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya defends the appointment of Mcebisi Jonas as a
Special Envoy to the United States.Concerns have arisen that Jonas’ 2020 utterances calling POTUS Donald Trump a homophone and racist may come back to haunt him. @JusstAlpha pic.twitter.com/Aw8NTAhI1O
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) April 16, 2025
ALSO READ: Jonas ready for new role as he mulls over how to manage US-SA tensions
‘Trump grudge’
Magwenya said that Trump wouldn’t hold this against Jonas.
“We don’t believe Trump is a man who holds grudges. If that were the case, a number of his Cabinet members would not be serving in his Cabinet. Leo Brent Bozell III wouldn’t have been nominated as US ambassador to South Africa.
“We believe Trump and his administration will have an appreciation that in politics things get said, but that doesn’t mean people are beholden to those positions.
“Equally, unkind remarks have been made about the African continent by Trump, and there’s no African leader who holds those comments against him.
“There’s a sense that everyone wants to move forward positively and constructively in terms of the relationship with the US,” Magwenya said.
US-SA tensions
Jonas’s appointment comes after President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) in February, in which he said South Africa “would not be bullied” and that he would look to send special envoys to global capitols, including the US, to explain the country’s laws and policies to the international community.
Jonas was appointed by Ramaphosa this week.
ALSO READ: Jonas warns of ‘no quick fixes’ to repairing SA relationship with US [VIDEO]
