Issued by: North West Communication Service
A statue of the former President of Bophuthatswana, Lucas Mangope, was removed from the Lehurutshe Civic Centre this morning (Thursday). Onlookers were locked outside the Civic Centre entrance and there was a strong police presence.
The removal follows an agreement reached between the North West government and the Lehurutshe residents and came after several months of uncertainty, following a refusal by Lehurutshe residents in April this year.
Since then, the United Democratic Party of Chief Lucas Mangope has accused the provincial government of using the statue as a political ploy to destroy its leader before the local government elections. Lehurutshe residents complained that the North West Government did not consult them.
The statue was erected in 1987 at an unconfirmed amount of R70000, collected form Lehurutshe residents. Speaking after the removal, North West Chief Whip, Mr Joe Selau, who is also chairman of the committee elected to deal with statues within the province, said the mandate of the people had been carried out.
He denied allegations that the governments action was a calculated move to destroy Chief Mangope leading up to the local government elections.
We have nothing against Chief Mangope as an individual. It was not the government, but the people who decided that all oppressive statues and symbols be removed. I hope there will be peace and stability in this region after this statue has been removed. Now we can look forward to the coming local government elections, said Mr Selau.
According to Mr Selau, the statue will be kept at the Lehurutshe Public Works premises until further notice. A statue of Cecil John Rhodes erected in front of the Mafikeng railway station, will be the next to go, but no one has shown interest in storing the statue.