The proposal to rename Sandton Drive to Leila Khaled has been met with severe criticism, as one faction supports the motion, while the other continuously rejects it. Picture: Boxer Ngwenya
The leader of the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) Kenneth Meshoe is pressuring the Joburg municipality to revoke the decision to rename Sandton Drive to Leila Khaled Drive.
Meshoe made his remarks at the State of the Nation Address (SONA) two-day debate in Parliament on Thursday.
Meshoe’s demands follow after the Joburg political management committee (PMC) suspended the renaming process for council members in the metro to reach a common ground.
The City of Johannesburg’s proposal to rename Sandton Drive after Palestinian political hero, Leila Khaled, sparked divisions among political parties and civic society.
Meshoe appealed to the ANC, EFF and Al Jama-ah faction to discard their plans in renaming Sandton Drive, citing Khaled’s controversial political career.
Khaled is mostly honoured for her political resistance against the oppression of Palestinian people, and gained notoriety for aircraft hijackings.
Meshoe argued that while Khaled boasts a controversial political career, she is not known by many South Africans.
“Leila Khaled is not a South African, she's not known by the majority of our people, and she has done nothing to benefit our country,” said Meshoe.
He sternly warned that changing Sandton Drive to Leila Khaled would see the closure the of the US Consulate which is located on the same area.
Khaled is a brass member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which was involved in terrorist attacks and claimed the lives of civilians.
The US declared Khaled and the PFLP as terrorists.
“The ACDP does not want to see the USA consulate close permanently due to unprofitable name-changing that will not contribute a dime to our economy, nor does the ACDP want to see the employees in Johannesburg lose their jobs because of an unwise, foolish, unpopular decision,” said Meshoe.
ACDP city council member Chris Rohlssen supported the PMC’s prerogative to halt renaming Sandton Drive, noting the party’s prayers have been heard.
The ACDP has long disapproved the metro’s proposal even after council members agreed in 2018 to rename Sandton Drive after Khaled.
“The ACDP is thankful that sanity has prevailed and the plans to rename Sandton Drive after a plane hijacker have been shelved. Our prayers have been answered and our protests have been heard,” said Rohlssen.
He urged that local government should prioritise adequate service delivery, instead of squandering public funds on honouring a non-South African political figure who has a stark political history.
“The City of Johannesburg has thousands of traffic lights that need fixing, and our broken bridges will cost R16 billion to mend. It would have been absolute madness to allocate scarce and much-needed funds to a divisive name-change.
“As it is, the City has had to borrow money to balance its budget. In July last year, council voted in favour of a R2.5bn French loan, and last month council agreed on a R2.8bn loan from the Development Bank of South Africa,” said Rohlssen.
The Star
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