Nelson Mandela Bay’s Executive Mayor, Nqaba Bhanga, said during a press conference this morning that the Municipality plans to establish a multi-sectoral committee to appeal against Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage’s name changes.
“The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has heeded the public outcry from our residents regarding the recently announced name changes and will submit an official complaint to the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa,” Bhanga said.
These name changes were gazetted on 23 February by Mthethwa. Port Elizabeth’s name changed to Gqeberha and Uitenhage to Kariega. The Port Elizabeth Airport was also changed to Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport.
“I believe the processes followed by the Minister and the ANC government to arrive at the names Gqeberha and Kariega to be fatally flawed and devoid of inclusivity. It is imperative that the processes followed in this regard be inclusive and reflect our constitutional commitment to reconciliation. I want to make it clear from the outset that I am not opposed to name changes, but for any name change to make sense I believe it should adhere to certain requirements.”
These are:
- It must unify the people affected by it.
- It should be a name that is easily remembered and recognisable.
- There should be a significant historical link with the city or town affected.
- The name should promote economic activity.
- The name should be correctly used in the context of the language it proposes to be written in.
Bhanga believes the gazetted name changes do not meet the above requirements.
“The law states that after name changes are published, any person or body dissatisfied with a geographical name approved by the Minister may, within 30 days from the date of publication, lodge a complaint in writing to the Minister.
“I am therefore in the process of establishing a multi-sectoral committee to support the objection process. We are approaching representatives from various institutions, including the Nelson Mandela University, Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber, Heritage Society, Historical Society, conference industry, local tourism industry, as well as public representatives, to assist us on the committee.
“We have also written to the Provincial Geographical Names Committee (PGNC) requesting documentation with regards to the process followed and minutes of meetings where the names were discussed. Once established, I plan to call the first meeting of the multi-sectoral committee on 10 March.”
The purpose of this committee is to compile a report with objections and suggestions, and submit it to the Minister within the 30-day objection period.
