Mara: I can't win

Johannesburg - Mara Louw is sick and tired. She just can't win, says the Idols judge who has once again found herself at the centre of controversy after the programme's broadcast on Sunday night.

Louw is often taken to task about her comments on social platforms such as Facebook. Many Idols fans were livid at the weekend about her plea for black people in townships to start voting.

"Each time one of the young, black contestants is voted out, people call me and ask why," Louw said.

"They want to know why talented black contestants are eliminated while less talented white contestants stay in the competition."

Her first response to such questions is to ask these people if they vote, because in Louw's opinion, if you don't vote, you can't complain.

Contestants are eliminated because they don't get enough votes, as was the case with Bongi Mthombeni from Johannesburg last week.

What really gets to Louw is complaints that she is racist because she encourages her fellow black South Africans to vote.

"We must move away from voting along colour lines. I'm really tired of that.

"There are black people who say they can't afford to vote 100 times. It's a difficult situation and I don't know how we're supposed to solve it. I want to tell these people: Just vote as many times as you can."

She said she doesn't know how to handle the attacks any more.

Only one winner

"It definitely gets to me. I'm sick and tired of it. I simply don't have the energy for that anymore.

"If I encourage white contestants, the black people are angry with me. If I encourage black contestants, the white people are angry. Am I supposed to just sit there and say they are all wonderful? I can't do that.

"Idols is a competition and there will only be one winner.

"It shouldn't be a racist thing, but what is South Africa going to do if a black person wins Idols?"

Louw is also angry about viewers complaining about the fact that she comments on some of the black participants' performances in her mother tongue.

"Good heavens! I'm an African. There's nothing more to say about that."

Furthermore, Louw's commentary after Elvis Blue's performance in Sunday night's episode was cut from the broadcast.

She gave the audience a talking-to because they had distracted her during his performance.

Gavin Wratten, executive producer and director of Idols, said the comments were cut because the programme would otherwise have exceeded its 90-minute time slot.