DA demands answers over THREE new Eastern Cape name changes

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is demanding greater transparency over proposed name changes affecting three towns in the Eastern Cape’s Senqu Local Municipality, questioning whether residents have been given a meaningful opportunity to participate in the process.

DA Shadow MEC for Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture Leander Kruger MPL said the party would request the full public participation record relating to proposed changes for Lady Grey, Sterkspruit and Herschel.

READ | Yet another Eastern Cape town set for a name change

Latest developments

The Eastern Cape Provincial Geographical Names Committee (ECPGNC) is considering applications to rename Lady Grey to Inkosi Makhobeni, Herschel to Inkosi Lihlongo and Sterkspruit to Inkosi Mpangazi.

An alternative name, Mapetla Mohapi, has also been proposed for Sterkspruit.

The latest developments follow correspondence from the Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture (DSRAC) inviting stakeholders from Senqu Local Municipality to a meeting at Bensonvale Hall last week to discuss the proposed names.

However, the DA is questioning whether the meeting formed part of a properly advertised public participation process.

Kruger said the party wants clarity on who was invited, how widely residents were informed and whether people who could not attend the meeting were given an opportunity to make written submissions.

Questions over consultation process

The DA has also raised questions about an earlier public participation process.

When DSRAC advertised public hearings in Senqu in May 2025, the proposed changes included Barkly East and several geographical features, but Lady Grey, Sterkspruit and Herschel were not listed among the town names under consideration.

According to Kruger, this raises questions about whether residents were adequately informed about the latest applications.

The DA plans to write to DSRAC MEC Sibulele Ngongo, requesting the complete record relating to the three applications.

The requested information includes the original applications and motivations, research undertaken in support of the proposed changes, proof of public notices and advertisements, minutes and attendance registers from consultation meetings, written comments and objections, and any recommendations already made by the ECPGNC.

The party is also seeking clarity on whether additional public hearings will take place before the applications are considered by the South African Geographical Names Council.

DA cites previous objections

The party’s concerns come after a separate dispute over geographical name changes earlier this year, when more than 38 000 objections were submitted against proposed changes affecting Graaff-Reinet, East London, Aberdeen, Adendorp and Barkly East.

Kruger said government should take lessons from that experience and ensure that public consultation is meaningful rather than simply a procedural requirement.

The DA said it supports redress, reconciliation and recognition of South Africa’s diverse history, but argues that communities should not have names changed without proper consultation.

“Meaningful consultation requires that residents be informed before decisions are made, given a genuine opportunity to participate, and assured that their views have been considered,” Kruger said.

The proposed changes have therefore placed the focus once again on the balance between historical redress and the right of communities to participate in decisions affecting their identities and heritage.

The DA says decisions concerning geographical names should not be imposed without residents being properly informed and given a genuine opportunity to have their say.

As Kruger put it: “Government should be focused on changing lives, not names.”

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