Minister Nathi Mthethwa has done a U-turn on the installation of a “monumental flag”, which would cost the taxpayers a whopping R22 million, following a huge public outcry.
“Over the past few days, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture has followed and taken note of public discourse that has unfolded in respect of the envisaged Monumental Flag,” the department said.
“In upholding these ethos and the inalienable rights of citizens to be heard, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture has directed his department to review the process related to the Monumental Flag in its totality.”
Earlier this week, Mthethwa defended the decision on different platforms, insisting that the planned R22 million project was for raising the foundational principles of the country’s democracy as enshrined in the Constitution.
Delivering his opening remarks in Parliament, Mthethwa said the monumental flag was one such monument to democracy.
“We are memorialising our democracy, and we are building this monumental flag, which will be there forever to inform society about this symbol,” he said.
“It is quite a clear marker of a break with the colonialism and apartheid. It epitomises the democratic values and other values,” he said.
News: The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) @SportArtsCultur will review the process related to the Monumental Flag in its totality. pic.twitter.com/qLjWf79yFm
— Min. Nathi Mthethwa (@NathiMthethwaSA) May 19, 2022
The planned 100-metre high flag, which would be constructed at Freedom Park in Pretoria, sparked outrage, with some saying millions are spent on vanity projects while artists continue to suffer financial hardship due to the Covid-19 lockdown.
Mthethwa said his department’s mandate was to transform the heritage landscape, among other things, by building museums and monuments and changing apartheid names of places and cities and any other thing that dominated the public space.