NATIONAL ASSEMBLY : 5th June 2008
 

Madame Speaker, 

South African place names reflect our history, cultures and in many respects our heritage. Changing existing place names must therefore be approached in the most sensitive way possible so as not to demean, belittle or deny any aspect of our past history.  

History is history and no amount of re-writing or revision will ever change that. But, that is exactly what the ANC wants to do by changing existing names to reflect only their history or heroes.  

One such example is the decision by the ANC-dominated eThekwini council to change the Mangosuthu Highway in Umlazi to Griffiths Mxenge. 

This is a glaring example of the ANC attempting to undermine the achievements of Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi MP by ignoring his legitimate claims to have contributed positively to development and progress in KwaZulu-Natal.   

The contributions of Prince Buthelezi during the struggle against apartheid cannot be ignored. Even now Prince Buthelezi refuses to condemn those that vilify him only allowing that they must be pitied for their small minds.
 

This after all was the man who fought apartheid for more than sixty years and steadfastly argued for the release of Nelson Mandela. 

Thank you