President Cyril Ramaphosa has unveiled the 10-meter-tall statues of the late former African National Congress (ANC) leaders Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela in KwaZulu-Natal on Tuesday morning.
Tambo’s statue was installed at Durban’s Beachfront, and Nelson Mandela’s stands at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
The R 22 million statues have been a source of debate as some political parties argue the funds could have been better used to better the state of the city and the lives of struggling residents.
eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba says the city’s decision to spend R 22 million on the two new statues of ANC struggle stalwarts is an investment for tourism and job creation.
Responding to criticisms, Xaba says, “We’ve built a fully-fledged tourism unit with a budget, so the money to build more tourism offerings will come from the tourism budget. So anybody who thinks that the money could have been used elsewhere is forgetting that at the centre of everything is to build the economy, create jobs, and tourism is going to be a major driver in that process.”
He says the cost of the statues has not detracted from improving service delivery.
Xaba says, “The streetlights are on, robots are on, we are burying potholes, we are repairing water leaks, and we are investing in water infrastructure. As we speak now, we are spending R 1.2 billion in replacing a pipe from Reservoir Hills to Chatsworth, Shallcross, Umlazi, Folweni and so on. That pipeline supplies 1.2 million people. It will be complete by the end of December.”
LIVE STREAM | Ramaphosa unveils bronze statues honouring Tambo and Mandela:
Reporting by Celumusa Zulu.
www.sabcnews.com, https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/ramaphosa-unveils-mandela-tambos-statues-in-durban/
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