The call to kill five white people for every black person killed has been taken out of context, says Black First Land First.

Even though the party is doubling down on its stance that it will kill five white people for every black person killed by what it terms are "agents of Johann Rupert", its president Andile Mngxitama said on Tuesday the comments are a warning to billionaire Rupert.

At the same media briefing, Mngxitama said the party had roped in former members of Zimbabwe’s liberation army to train their party members in combat.

He told a party rally at the weekend: “If you kill us, we kill you… This time around we will not kill the people you send; we will kill you.”

Mngxitama on Tuesday said Rupert had confessed to having a private army of assassins in the taxi industry.

“The extreme right-wing and racist organisations from AfriForum to the DA, I see the Freedom Front Plus is also in the mix, have deliberately distorted the contexts of the comments. They have erased Johann Rupert completely from the context so when you listen to them you think I just jumped on stage and said let’s kill five white people. In fact, the clip that was issued by us as Black First Land First, which gives context, has been edited by these groups,” said the BLF leader

Mngxitama said the statement was in response to the comment made by Rupert in the Chairman’s Conversation last week with Power FM chairperson Given Mkhari, when he said he had a friend named Jabu who chaired a taxi association. During the interview Rupert had said those in red, a reference to the EFF, must remember that his friend Jabu chairs a taxi association. The Stellenbosch-based businessman said: “One of the first tenants of business partners was the taxi association, so I also have my own army so when those red guys come they’ve got to remember the taxi association.”

This, Mngxitama said, was a direct threat to black people from Rupert. “Johann Rupert is explicit. He says what I have in common with a Jabu is that he is a chairman of a taxi association and that I, Johann Rupert, one of the first partners I have are taxi associations. Before Mkhari he says I have an army. I have an army. This is what Johann Rupert says,” Mngxitama told reporters.

Mngxitama said Rupert’s comments were tantamount to the Remgro owner saying he will set his taxi association army on any black people who come after him.