Rustenburg - North West pastors on Thursday welcomed President Jacob Zuma appointing Minister in the Presidency Jeff Radebe as special envoy to Nigeria.
Mahikeng Ministers Fellowship chairman apostle Zandisile Reginald Mpame said they hoped Radebe would explain why the bodies were still in Nigeria almost two months after the collapse.
Radebe was expected to travel to Nigeria to expedite the repatriation of the remains of 85 South Africans who were among 116 people killed in a building collapse at the Synagogue Church of All Nations in Lagos, Nigeria on September 12.
Mpame expressed disappointment over the “inhumane manner” in which Nigerian authorities had dealt with the repatriation process.
“It is completely unacceptable by any standard that the identification process and repatriation of the bodies of our compatriots has taken close to 60 days,” said Mpame.
He said families continued to deal with the trauma of the deaths and would only have closure once they had buried them.
Two weeks ago, Radebe said DNA samples of the deceased were being analysed at a laboratory in Stellenbosch.
Government said it was unaware of how far the process was.
Sapa