Legal battles loom over renaming of East London, Graaff-Reinet

Major legal battles over the recent decision to change the names of East London and Graaff-Reinet are on the cards. Sport, arts and culture minister Gayton McKenzie indicated this week that he would oppose AfriForum’s bid to overturn the recent renaming of Graaff-Reinet to Robert Sobukwe Town. Meanwhile, McKenzie’s counterpart in the Eastern Cape, MEC Sibulele Ngongo, is being dragged to court after allegedly failing to provide a nonprofit organisation with the reasons why East London’s name had to be changed to KuGompo City.

Thename changes were publishedin the government gazette by McKenzie earlier in 2026, drawing widespread objections from concerned parties, including thousands of citizens who signed various petitions objecting to them. In May,AfriForum took McKenzie, the South African Geographical Names Council, its counterparts in the Eastern Cape and the Beyers Naude municipality to the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria after the decision in February to rename Graaff-Reinet, despite a number of objections. When no response was received from McKenzie regarding AfriForum’s application, the matter was recently placed on the unopposed roll.

However, the state attorney’s office in Pretoria wrote to AfriForum’s lawyers this week, indicating the minister’s intention to oppose the application. The state attorney has yet to file its opposing papers, and a court date has not yet been set. Eastern Cape nonprofit Friends of Schalk The Movement is now taking Ngongo to court for her alleged failure to provide it with reasons in writing as to why East London’s name needed to change to KuGompo City.

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The NPO wrote to the MEC on March 4, demanding that she explain how the decision to change the city’s name was reached, but reportedly received no response. In its notice of motion, seen by the Daily Dispatch, the nonprofit requests Ngongo to provide it with the reasons for the renaming decision and to explain why she failed to respond to its legal letter in March. Friends of Schalk’s Buffalo City Metro-based attorney, Brandon Blignaut of MKB Attorneys, confirmed the lawsuit, saying they had filed their legal papers at the East London High Court this week.

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