It is Louis Trichardt, rules High Court

Date: 07 November 2014 By: Linda van der Westhuizen

Louis Trichardt is Louis Trichardt again, following a ruling by the High Court in Pretoria on Thursday last week.

The decision of the former Minister of Arts and Culture, Mr Paul Mashatile, to change the name of the town to Makhado was published in the Government Gazette on 14 October 2011. Mashatile’s decision to approve the recommendation of the South African Geographical Names Council (SAGNC) to change the name of the town Louis Trichardt to Makhado is now as set aside by the High Court.

The attorney of Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa, Ms Doris Tshepe, confirmed that the minister had conceded the review and consented to the order to set aside the decision. The first respondent (in this case the Minister) will pay the costs of the applicant, the Chairpersons Association (CA). Tshepe is from the firm Cheadle Thompson and Haysom in Johannesburg.

“Whereas the SAGNC satisfied itself that adequate consultations were held prior to the impugned decision taken in terms of the South African Geographical Names Council Act [Act 118 of 1998] – to change the name of Louis Trichardt to Makhado - the relevant local and provincial geographical names committees failed to ensure that proper records of such consultations were held. As a result, such records cannot be placed before the Court in order to prove … that indeed consultations took place in compliance with the requirements of the Act,” Tshepe said.  

Mr André Naudé, chairperson of the CA and attorney of Coxwell, Steyn, Vise and Naudé, explained that no application to appeal can be made, since the first respondent had conceded and consented. “This is a victory for all good people who want good governance and transparent processes and who stand together in their war against corrupt processes. Non-transparent governing systems result in opportunities for corrupt people to govern in the interest of their own pockets only and not in the interest of the citizens of South Africa,” said Naudé.  

The chairperson of the SAGNC was the second respondent in the matter and the Makhado Municipality the third. “We are investigating in order to get to the roots of the matter as we were never informed of the proceedings as the affected party. We only got this through the media. Council will make an announcement soon,” said Makhado municipal spokesperson Mr Louis Bobodi.

CA executive member and chairperson of the Hlanganani concerned group Mr Robert Khosa expressed his opinion that the municipality should stop with name changing. “They polarize people and drive a wedge between blacks and blacks,” said Khosa. “Louis Trichardt is a neutral name,” said Mr JJ Gohell, also from the Hlanganani concerned group.

Naudé explained that Louis Trichardt was a trustworthy leader who had a proven track record of standing for peace and reconciliation. “When Louis Trichardt left, Ratsituu Ramabulana declared that the departure of his trusted friend ‘Luwishi’was a personal loss to him,” said Naudé.

“It is good that it is Louis Trichardt. The municipality must stop wasting money on name changes and repair the roads and sewerage,” a resident of Kutama said. “We just want service delivery,” was the only remark of another resident.

“I am very happy. This is good news and we hope it stays this way,” resident Ms Xanthe Joubert said and showed a T-shirt that was printed when the town’s name reverted to Louis Trichardt the first time around.

“I am overwhelmed. This is a community that stands together for justice. I don’t think it has ever happened that a community fought such a case for the second time and succeeded,” said CA secretary Ms Inga Gilfillan.

The name of the town had been Louis Trichardt since 1899. In 2003, it was published in the Government Gazette that the Minister had decided to approve the name change to Makhado. The High Court rejected the review application of the CA, after which the appeal process started. The appeal court judged in 2007 that the name change be set aside, due to insufficient consultation. This time around, the High Court set the name change aside due to a lack of documentation.

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Linda van der Westhuizen

Linda van der Westhuizen has been with Zoutnet since 2001. She has a heart for God, people and their stories. Linda believes that every person is unique and has a special story to tell. It follows logically that human interest stories is her speciality. Linda finds working with people and their leaders in the economic, educational, spiritual and political arena very rewarding. “I have a special interest in what God is doing in our town, province and nation and what He wants us to become,” says Linda.

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