Cogta MEC calls for statue to honour Mangosuthu Buthelezi

KwaZulu-Natal Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi, has called for the erection of a national monument to honour the late IFP founder Mangosuthu Buthelezi. He said the IFP founder’s legacy deserved permanent recognition in South Africa’s national heritage. In a statement, MEC Buthelezi said a complete and truthful reflection of South Africa’s liberation history must recognise the late Buthelezi’s contribution alongside other national icons.

His remarks follow the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality’s recent installation of statues of former Presidents Nelson Mandela and Oliver Reginald Tambo at the Moses Mabhida Stadium precinct. Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi was the bridge between the ANC mission in exile of Mr Oliver Tambo and the new democratic dispensation of President Nelson Mandela. “Prince Buthelezi kept the struggle alive in South Africa.

When the apartheid regime had silenced both Tambo and Mandela – Buthelezi was the voice of the oppressed. The two statues in Ethekwini are therefore incomplete without the statue of Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi,” said Buthelezi in a statement. MEC Buthelezi made the call during his keynote address at the 2026 KwaZulu Natal Municipal Excellence Awards, held at the Durban International Convention Centre.

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He noted that the story symbolised by the two statues remains incomplete without the inclusion of uMtwana wakwaPhindangene. He added that honouring Prince Buthelezi alongside other liberation icons would ensure a more inclusive historical narrative that acknowledges the collective leadership that shaped the nation.

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