Share

Public participation launched for road renaming to honour Winnie Madikizela-Mandela

0:00
play article
Subscribers can listen to this article
  • A public participation process has been launched to rename William Nicol Drive after the late Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.
  • Johannesburg mayor Geoff Makhubo announced the process at a memorial for Madikizela-Mandela to mark her birthday.
  • Madikizela-Mandela would have turned 84 on Saturday. 

In honour of the late Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, the City of Johannesburg is embarking on a public participation process to rename William Nicol Drive after the ANC stalwart.

Johannesburg Mayor Geoff Makhubo announced the process on Saturday – the day that would have marked Madikizela-Mandela's 84th birthday – at an event at the Fourways Memorial, where she was laid to rest in 2018.

"We are at the Fourways Memorial at the Mandela Estate to remember and pay our respects to the freewoman of the City of Johannesburg, the late Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.

"She would have been 84 years today and we thought, as the City of Johannesburg, to come and pay our respects and officially launch the start of a public participation process to rename William Nicol after a motion of council was passed a year and a half ago in order to honour Winnie Madikizela-Mandela," Makhubo said in a video taken at the event and shared on Twitter.

The road was named after Dutch Reformed minister and Transvaal administrator at the time of construction William Nicol.

The renaming was first announced in October 2018, by then Gauteng MEC for transport Ismail Vadi.

The change in names seeks to promote inclusivity, Vadi said at the time.

"The names on our road and transport infrastructure may have a technical function but government has a conscious role to play in promoting an inclusive identity with such infrastructure," Vadi previously told News24.

"In so doing it should raise citizens' awareness of the heroes and heroines that played significant roles in the country's struggle against apartheid and its people's freedom. The naming of the provincial road network does not seek to remove the past but to promote an identity which is inclusive of all the citizens of the country."

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
41% - 424 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
59% - 600 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.93
+0.0%
Rand - Pound
23.90
+0.0%
Rand - Euro
20.40
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.33
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.0%
Platinum
908.05
+1.2%
Palladium
1,014.94
+1.3%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE