Advertising Body Wants 'Fear F*kol' Billboard in Joburg Changed or Removed After 2 Women Complain

Wednesday, October 04, 2023 at 4:04 PM by Lebogang Mashego 2 min read

The Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) has ruled a billboard with the words "fear fokol" as crude and offensive
The decision comes after two women complained that the billboard was inappropriate for children to see
Some South Africans see nothing wrong with the advertiser's choice of words and believed the complaint is frivolous

PAY ATTENTION: Let yourself be inspired by real people who go beyond the ordinary! Subscribe and watch our new shows on Briefly TV Life now!

JOHANNESBURG - The Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) has ruled that a billboard with the words "Fear Fokol" is crude and offensive.

Armoured Mobility billboard on a Johannesburg highway — An advertiser has been ordered to remove or amend a billboard with the words "fear fokol". Images: Armoured Mobility/Website & Stock Photo/Getty Images
Source: Getty Images

Two women complain about "crude" billboard

This comes after two women lodged a complaint about the large billboard on the N3 highway in Johannesburg.

According to IOL, Michelle Stoltz and Jolande de Beer argued that the billboard commissioned for an Armoured Mobility advertisement was too inappropriate, especially because it was located in an area children could see.

Armoured Mobility defends controversial billboard

Armoured Mobility specialises in the sale of armoured vehicles. On its website, the company said it had no intention to offend anyone with its bold billboard.

The company explained that "fokol" is a colloquial Afrikaans word which essentially means "nothing".

“ 'Fokol' in Afrikaans essentially implies a sense of nothing, of having nothing or being nothing.

"While the word ‘niks' is the direct translation to 'nothing' in Afrikaans, 'fokol' is a commonly used Afrikaans slang word. This is our angle, our direction in taking a strong colloquial word and linking it to a bold message statement that speaks volumes," said Armoured Mobility.

South Africans scoff at the "fear fokol" complaint

@Am_Xhosa said:

"We are slowly becoming an intolerant country, court are used to suppress other people's views. Now we are forced to use other people's vocab, who deem to be professional... mxm."

@KBYProspectMike said:

"Really weak meanwhile, we still paying R50 for 100mb lol."

@master_braai said:

"That's how you know people aren't suffering economically yet in this country. They have time for trivial stuff but no time to go after the presidency."

@GeraldJacob1 said:

"It seems these two women have f*kol better to do than complain about stupid stuff!"

Makhadzi lands on Times Square billboard in New York

Briefly News previously reported that Makhadzi recently released her highly anticipated album Mbofholowo, which has received glowing reviews.

The new body of work is doing so well that it's earned her a spot on a Times Square billboard in New York.