Joburg council considers motion to rename Wolmarans Street after controversial prophet

Johannesburg City council meeting at the Connie Bapela House in Braamfontein. Picture: Neil McCartney / The Citizen The Johannesburg municipal council has deferred a motion to rename Wolmarans Street in the Johannesburg CBD. The UDM’s Yongama Zigebe is spearheading the campaign to rename Wolmarans Street after the leader of The Revelation Spiritual Home (TRSH), Dr.

uZwi-Lezwe Radebe. This church is located on the same street and is known for integrating Christianity with African spirituality. On Thursday, Zigebe requested that the motion be deferred until the next council meeting.

He did not explain why. But he toldThe Citizenon Friday that he is still passionate about this name change and that he wants the process to go ahead. “Renaming Wolmarans is not about hero-worship.It is about recognising contribution.

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Wolmarans Street currently reflects a colonial naming tradition. “Renaming it does not erase history; it contextualises it. Johannesburg cannot remain architecturally African but symbolically colonial.

Street names are not decoration. They are curriculum. They educate daily.” Zigebe said Radebe is an exemplary figure to the people of Johannesburg and the rest of Gauteng.

He said Radebe embodies values of community upliftment, nation building and the advancement of the country’s democratic values. He has also described him as a leader in different sectors of society. “This motion affirms that impact matters.

That institution-building matters. That identity restoration matters. That African intellectual contribution deserves permanent recognition in the geography of this city.

“Renaming this street is not about sentiment. It is about aligning our spatial landscape with the democratic values of dignity, recognition, and cultural affirmation,” he said. Meanwhile, the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) said it is completely against the renaming of Wolmarans Street. The party’s leader, Corne Mulder, toldThe Citizenon Friday that the Johannesburg municipal council should be more concerned about service delivery than renaming streets.

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