South Africa Reacts to City of Johannesburg’s Bid To Name Part of the CBD After Archbishop Desmond Tutu

• Mpho Phalatse said that the City is thinking of renaming part of the CBD after the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu
• St Mary's Cathedral is holding daily prayer services in Tutu's honour and will have a memorial service on Thursday
• The late Archbishop Emeritus' state funeral will take place at St George's Cathedral in Cape Town on 1 January, 2022

JOHANNESBURG - Mpho Phalatse, the mayor of the City of Johannesburg, said that the City is toying with the idea of renaming the part of the CBD surrounding St Mary's Cathedral after the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Tutu served at St Mary's Cathedral during apartheid, making it an important part of his legacy. The church is paying their respects to him by holding daily prayer services, which give members of the public an opportunity to reflect on his life.

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On Thursday (30 November) the cathedral is holding a memorial service for the late archbishop, News24 reports. His official funeral will take place at St George's Cathedral in Cape Town on 1 January 2022.

City of Johannesburg's plans to honour Tutu

According to Jacaranda FM, the proposed name for the area around St Mary's Cathedral is the Archbishop Desmond Tutu Precinct. Phalatse said the city is earnestly looking into executing the proposed name change.

“We believe that it would really be befitting to honour a man of his calibre and we will begin the processes that are necessary to get that done," Phalatse said.

Phalatse added that the City has willingly used its resources to support the different memorial services and tributes to the late archbishop. They also aim to reclaim the inner-city to this end, as this was a cause that Tutu championed.

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Readers react to Phalatse's statement

Briefly News polled its readers to find out what they think of the City of Johannesburg's proposed name change in honour of the late Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu. Here are some of the reactions we received:

Collen Samuel Tefu asked:

"Why now? They should have honoured the late Archbishop whilst he was alive."

Lesiba Madiba remarked:

"So in this country, people have to die first before they are honoured."

Refentse Madiba said:

"That's all they know... rename, rename, rename."

Ndodana Sipho Richard believes:

"If it is going to speed up service delivery and employ youth it's fine do it."

Cinamon Aquarius Mathosa remarked:

"Change is good."

Malose Mahloko shared:

"Nothing wrong with that. Places, streets, buildings etc are named after people everywhere every day. Controversy will always be there, rightly or wrongly."

Luxolo Mzumbe believes:

"It's an excellent idea. Tutu needs to be celebrated and his legacy preserved but for now. The city needs more service delivery to its people than name changing. Let's first do the right things and deliver to the people and then we can start with name changes."

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Speaking of memorials to Tutu, Briefly News recently reported that on 26 December, Archbishop Desmond Tutu passed away at Cape Town's Oasis Frail Care Centre aged 90. His funeral will take place in Cape Town on 1 January, 2022.

However, his funeral will not be the only way that Tutu will be memorialised. From 27 December until 31 December, St George's Cathedral will ring its bells for 10 minutes at noon each day, giving people a moment to reflect on his life.

On 31 December, the public will have an opportunity to bid farewell to Tutu as he will lie in state at the cathedral. The funeral on Saturday will be led by Archbishop Thabo Makgoba.

Source: Briefly News