· X post
Musk calls South Africa's B-BBEE rules 'extremely racist'; Ramaphosa says 'Our laws are not racist'
Racism should not be rewarded, no matter to which race it is applied.
What he said or did
In an exchange on X with foreign ministry official Clayson Monyela, Musk called B-BBEE extremely racist
and wrote: Racism should not be rewarded, no matter to which race it is applied.
He alleged Starlink had been denied a licence because he is not Black (Pretoria News).
Background
In December 2025 Communications Minister Solly Malatsi gazetted a policy direction letting equity-equivalent investment count toward the 30% ownership rule, but ICASA said it cannot recognise such programmes under current law.
Official response
President Ramaphosa said: Our laws are not racist. They are empowerment laws meant to uplift people who were discriminated against,
and called singling out BEE laws quite dishonest.
Fact-checks and findings
Pretoria News reported that ICASA confirmed in March 2025 that Starlink had not formally applied for the necessary licences.
What happened next
On 13 May 2026 Malatsi said his department would seek amendments to the Electronic Communications Act so equity-equivalent programmes can count toward ownership requirements (The Mercury).
Sources
- Pretoria News14 Apr 2026
- IOL15 Apr 2026
- Reuters (via Bizcommunity)15 Dec 2025
- The Mercury14 May 2026
This entry records what was publicly said or done, as reported by the sources above. Quotes are attributed to the person who made them.
