Fadiel Adams won't back down

The National Coloured Congress leader continues to use his platform to pursue the interests of his constituency, snarl at the DA and accuse the ANC of marginalising 'coloured' people.

- By Dennis Cruywagen

Respect and fear in Lavender Hill were given to the men who drove flashy cars, were seemingly seldom short of money and not averse to using their fists, a gun or a knife.

They carried tattoos they had earned in prison as part of their upward journey in the ranks of a numbers jail gang, such as the 26s, 27s and 28s, which indicated their status in the criminal hierarchy in the Western Cape.

On the streets of Lavender Hill, a dumping ground for victims of apartheid's forced removals, young boys regularly encountered these men. The young, impressionable Fadiel Adams had an uncle who was a "general" in the notorious 26s jail gang. His uncle was at the top of this particular gang's structure. He was a made man, a harde bandiet (hardened criminal). Because Adams was looking for respect and credibility on the streets, he wanted to follow in his footsteps.

On a recent cold Saturday morning I drive out to Mitchells Plain to meet Adams in his home in Westridge. Home to the biggest concentration of "coloured" voters in the province, the township is a battleground in elections.

Once inside his modest home we sit down to have coffee. He tells me that his weekend started with an early-morning call to intervene in some violence somewhere in the community. I gather that someone was shot. He tells me about his childhood, political background and beliefs, and the party he founded and leads, the National Coloured Congress. It is in the same week the National Assembly had adopted a recommendation from the Ethics Committee to sanction him for 15 days for his unbridled outburst on Facebook. His pay will also be withheld.

His offence was a rant against a DA member. Speaker Thoko Didiza called his outburst "repugnant, wholly unbefitting of high office and this institution, and therefore inexcusable". He apologised and withdrew his remarks.