Bogus interpreter during Mandela's funeral surfaces in app advertisement
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dec. 10, 2013: President Barack Obama looks down as he stands next to the sign language interpreter as he makes his speech at the memorial service for former South African president Nelson Mandela at the FNB Stadium in Soweto near Johannesburg. South Africa's deaf federation said on Wednesday that the interpreter on stage for Mandela memorial was a "fake." (AP)
The bogus sign language interpreter who gained worldwide notoriety for his bizarre performance at Nelson Mandela’s funeral has reportedly resurfaced in a promotional video.
The Algemeiner reports that Thamsanqa Jantjie, who was institutionalized after his random gestures as heads of state, President Obama and other dignitaries spoke during Mandela’s funeral in December, allegedly broke out of his asylum to film the advertisement for LiveLens, an Israeli mobile application.
“I am really, really sorry for what happened,” Jantjie says during the 80-second clip, which depicts him speaking and then interpreting his own words. “Now I make it up to the whole world … Now I do campaign for money.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Max Bluvband, CEO of LiveLens, said the company was seeking a personality recognized throughout the globe.
“Our main objective is to bring awareness to live streaming and to do it in an amusing way with someone that everyone knows,” Bluvband told Algemeiner.
Jantjie later adds in the clip: “Remember, the most interesting things happen live.”