CEO of SpaceX Elon Musk has called a senior South African government official a “fucking racist” and a “donkey” in the latest expansion of his long-running public dispute with Pretoria over the license for its Starlink satellite broadband service.
exchange, which played on x On Sunday, it started when Clayson Monyela, head of public diplomacy at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, tagged Musk in a post, pointing out that more than 600 US companies operate in South Africa in compliance with local laws.
“@elonmusk is seeing over 600 USA companies investing more in (South Africa), complying with #SouthAfrican laws and thriving. Zero drama!!” Posted by Monyela.
Musk's response, posted within a few hours, was vulgar and direct: “Stop being so racist, asshole.”
The outcry marks a further deterioration in Musk's already strained relationship with the South African government, which he has repeatedly accused of racial discrimination over the country's black economic empowerment framework. Under South African licensing rules, potential telecommunications licensees like Starlink must cede 30% of their equity to historically disadvantaged groups – a condition SpaceX has said it does not do anywhere else in the world.
In March 2025, Musk X claimed Starlink was not allowed to operate in South Africa “because I'm not black”, a statement Monila publicly refuted at the time.
broadside
The latest comprehensive aspect comes against the backdrop of a slow-moving but politically explosive policy process that could provide a solution for Starlink and other multinationals in the telecom sector that are unwilling or unable to dilute equity locally.
In December 2025, Communications Minister Solly Malatsi Gazetted a final policy direction Instructing the regulator, Icasa, to recognize equity equivalent investment programs (EEIPs) as an alternative to the 30% local ownership rule.
Reading: ICT sector BEE code under microscope as Starlink circle
Under the EEIP framework, a multinational company can retain full ownership of its South African operation while making qualifying investments equivalent to 30% of the value of its local operations or 4% of annual local revenues in local infrastructure, skills development or enterprise support.
Starlink has indicated It will invest around $2 billion under such a framework R500 million Connecting 5,000 rural schools with high-speed internet.
Stop being so blatantly racist, asshole.
– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 12 April 2026
This directive has been strongly opposed. The Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies, chaired by the ANC's Khusela Diko, has accused Malatsi of exaggeration and called for the directive to be withdrawn. EFF and MK Party Argued that EEIP will undermine transformation in the ICT sector. However, the presidency is publicly supported Malatsi's reforms.
separately, B-BBEE ICT Sector Council Last week it was announced that a full review of the 2016 ICT Sector Code is underway, with public comments open until 20 May. That review could help determine whether EEIP will become a permanent feature of the ICT sector.
delay
Industry analysts have suggested that even if the policy direction survives political and legal challenge, the regulatory process could take 18–24 months to complete, making a realistic Starlink launch in South Africa before the end of 2027.
Starlink is operational in 24 African countries, including all of South Africa's neighbors except Namibia, which rejected the company's license applications in March.
Reading: Why did Namibia slam the door on Starlink?
Update: In a follow-up post on
He added: “We were offered the opportunity several times to bribe ourselves into getting the license by pretending that a black man ran Starlink SA, but I have refused to do so on principle. Racism should not be rewarded, no matter what race it applies to. Racist politicians in South Africa should be ashamed. They should be shown no respect anywhere in the world and should desist from being shamelessly racist!” – © 2026 NewsCentral Media
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