Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman is bothered that the current situation in KwaZulu-Natal has resulted to ’’heated emotions and explosive statements that don’t augur well for our country’’.

In a statement on Wednesday, Sooliman ’’humbly requested that we stop the racial war, both on social media and on the ground’’.

’’We need to take a step back, all of us, and reflect on the situation. Is a race war going to benefit any of us? There is anger understandably, on all sides, but expressing that anger violently is counter-productive to our harmonious development and in essence, is futile. In the interest of peace, prosperity and rebuilding a better society for all of us, may I humbly request that we stop the racial war both on social media and on the ground.’’

Sooliman started off by saying: ’’Gift of the Givers has always intervened in the best interest of all the people of our land unconditionally. Our 29-year history bears testimony to that, and so do all the positive comments we receive from the diverse groupings in our society.

’’We need to be circumspect in our approach, forgive the mistakes made, open meaningful dialogue, calm the tension and understand each others challenges and anxieties. Conflict and aggression is not what we strived for in the 27 years of our young democracy.

’’The journey to the ideal society is full of thorns and many challenges. How we navigate it, build friendships and a common humanity is in our hands. At times we will go off the path, make mistakes, get angry with each other, behave irrationally and damage our interpersonal relationships irreparably.

’’Responsible leadership demands that. Mr Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Thabo Mbeki, Jacob Zuma, Cyril Ramaphosa and Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi would certainly strive for that.

’’Can we as citizens of this country fix the tension between ourselves through responsible action. It would be in the best interest of all of us.’’