Bonginkosi ‘Zola 7‘ Dlamini surfaced on social media to defend himself after actress Pearl Thusi levelled abuse accusations against the rap icon in a post-and-delete tweet.
Zola 7 responds to Pearl Thusi’s tweet
The 44-year-old has been the subject of a ‘pity party’ on social media this week. A video showing a frail-looking Zola enjoying a conversation with friends went viral on social media, with fans concerned about the state of his well-being.
Thusi, on the other hand, begged to differ about the support Zola was receiving from fans who were ready to open their wallets and donate funds to the philanthropist.
In a since-deleted tweet, Thusi shuddered at the thought of supporting a man linked to gender-based violence (GBV). Of course, in this case, Thusi was referencing a report published by Daily Sun in 2017, where it’s alleged Zola’s wife, Sibongile Nkabinde had filed an assault charge against her husband.
The existence of such a case docket was never confirmed by police and currently, Dlamini and his wife are still together.
In response to this tweet, Zola simply noted that those with intimate knowledge of his relationship with Nkabinde “know false accusations from the truth.”
Those who know me at a close proximity know false accusations from the truth. https://t.co/7gDKRRNpdi
— @zola7 (@Officialzola7) March 9, 2022
Does Zola need the ‘pity party’?
The 44-year-old has been the subject of a social media crowdfunding campaign prompted by fans who were left concerned after this video clip did the rounds.
Mzansi we need to all come together and Give Zola 7 Hope.
— The General π€πππ (@KingMntungwa) March 8, 2022
We owe him that much for Giving us Hope and making our Dreams possible. ππ½π€β€οΈπ€ pic.twitter.com/wSJAAsqih9
TshisaLive obtained a statement from the rap icon’s assistant Sisi Kunene, who confirmed that despite speculation about Zola’s health and financial status, he is fine.
βThe truth is Bonginkosi [Dlamini] is fine. He’s got epilepsy. He is taking chronic medication for it,” Kunene said.
Zola also reassured fans in a series of tweets posted on Wednesday. The legendary musician thanked fans for sticking by his side and paying back his lifelong philanthropic work with unwavering support.
“For the past few days I’ve been reading what people are posting about me and I must say, I appreciate the love you guys are showing me. So many people are giving me my flowers while I can still smell them. When I was helping people, I truly wasn’t expecting anything in return, that’s just the nature of uBonginkosi.
“Seeing so many of you uniting in my name is really heart warming and brought actual tears to my eyes.I also see the negative tweets… Oh well, you can’t please everyone vele mawumuntu. You can do a million things right and make 1 mistake and they’ll remember you for your mistake,” he wrote.
You guys flooded the Twitter streets with messages of hope, concern and gratitude. Ngizolulama bafwethu… I still owe the country one more offering. Ngiyabonga ngothando lwenu. #namanje
— @zola7 (@Officialzola7) March 9, 2022
This is not the first time Zola’s health has caused a frenzy on social media. In July 2021, false reports came out that the rapper had passed away. These allegations, as it turned out, were false.