South African television personality Minnie Dlamini has taken legal action against popular podcasters MacGyver “MacG” Mukwevho and Sol Phenduka. According to Sunday World, Dlamini has filed a R2.5 million lawsuit in the Equality Court, accusing the pair of hate speech, harassment, and gender-based discrimination.
Dlamini claims that the controversial Podcast and Chill hosts have subjected her to ongoing misogynistic remarks, the latest being aired during a widely watched episode.
According to Sunday World, during the discussion, MacG and Sol speculated about the reasons behind Dlamini’s past relationship failures. At one point, MacG suggested that hygiene issues might have been a factor. Dlamini described this as a “dehumanising” and “offensive” claim, calling it an attack on her dignity as a woman.
The lawsuit demands R1 million in damages for impairment of dignity and emotional distress, plus an additional R1.5 million donation to a women’s rights organisation of her choice. Her legal team argues that the remarks amount to gender-based hate speech, violating South Africa’s equality and anti-discrimination laws.
“This isn’t just about me,” Dlamini said in a statement. “It’s about holding people accountable for normalising the degradation of women under the guise of entertainment. It’s time we draw a line.”
Dlamini revealed that the harassment started years ago but escalated after she supported actress Amanda du-Pont, who accused musician Jub Jub of abuse in another high-profile case. Since then, she alleges the podcast team has repeatedly targeted her with innuendo, mockery, and personal attacks.
While MacG issued a public apology during a later episode, Dlamini dismissed it, saying:
“Apologies without accountability mean nothing. This is not a mistake, it’s a pattern. And patterns need to be broken through justice, not just PR.”
If the court rules in Dlamini’s favour, MacG and Sol will be required to issue a court-approved apology to her and women at large, complete 50 hours of gender sensitisation training, and perform 100 hours of unpaid community service at institutions dealing with gender-based violence. They will also be ordered to pay R1.5 million to Women for Change, a registered non-profit organisation.
