Apparently, Councillor Brett Herron of the naming committee has proposed that the city council rename De Waal Drive to Philip Kgosana Drive.
According to Herron, Kgosana was a brave young man who led a protest of PAC supporters to the city in 1960.
I appreciate the efforts to honour him, but why should it be at the expense of De Waal?
Who was De Waal?
I think Herron, in his enthusiasm, has made a mistake, in that, in the press articles I read, he has made no effort to explain who De Waal was, and why he should now suddenly be tossed aside.
I did some research.
It was in the early 1920s that Sir Nicholas Fredrick De Waal, the first administrator of the Cape Province, ordered the construction of the road, which was a great success.
Prior to that it seems De Waal was a journalist, a chief scout of the province, and appeared to have played a large part in reconciliation efforts after the Boer War.
So De Waal is an important part of our history, and I really don’t think his name should now be discarded.
And why must it be a case of one or another?
Changing existing names is an expensive undertaking for ratepayers, and causes confusion for road users.
So why not let’s save Philip Kgosana for the next exciting new road or building project?
Perhaps the city’s new Foreshore project could be named after Kgosana?
I don’t believe any major infrastructure should be encumbered with the name of any historical figure, but I concede that supposedly many people like it, so fair enough.
Apparently, if the public wishes to comment on this, they should send their thoughts to [email protected]