G’town is still G’town

KEEP Grahamstown Grahamstown (KGG) has been campaigning to retain the name Grahamstown since the issue first arose in 2007. By law, changing the name of a city/town requires there to be sufficient support from the local community. That matter was exhaustively tested in three processes of the Makana local council from 2007-2013 when it was shown there was insufficient support to change Grahamstown’s name.

The most recent “process”, by the Eastern Cape Provincial Geographic Names Committee (ECPGNC), was conducted independently of our local authority and fell hopelessly short of the legal requirements of a public consultation process. The ECPGNC nonetheless saw fit to recommend the name change to its motherbody, the SAGNC and which led to a Notice being published in the Government Gazette on June 29.

It’s of great concern that the Daily Dispatch and other Tiso Blackstar Group newspapers in the Eastern Cape reported that the effect of the Notice was that the name change was final. Making it more inexcusable is that KGG pointed out to you previously in connection with other such name changes as Queenstown that the Notices are not final – a final decision can only be made by the minister after considering objections received within one month of the Notice and he must give reasons for accepting or rejecting objections.

The public has been misled regarding the effect of the Notices, not only in the case of the name of places such as Queenstown, but now Grahamstown.

Due to the efforts of KGG the public has been made aware that by law Grahamstown’s name is still Grahamstown. Many objections have been directed to the office of the minister of arts & culture and many more are anticipated before the objection period closes. – Jock McConnachie and Sigidla Ndumo, KGG