Francistown street name changes underway
Patricia Edwin | Wednesday December 4, 2013 15:58
Councillors have during the last several council meetings shown through motions that they would like to rename streets in the city, especially in the CBD.
Their motions also showed that they would also like to name their new airport and new stadium after figures that are regarded as local heroes.
The motion for street names changes first came with James Kgalajwe before he became the mayor in 2011.
Kgalajwe said that the main thing was to consult the people of Francistown.
The people have to play a big role in this as they are the ones who know what they have to agree on and they are more likely to know what names would be suitable for which streets,” he said.
Most of the streets in the CBD bear English names of missionaries and people who used to live in Francistown, but the councillors have agreed that they want the names changed to those of local heroes.
Kgalajwe further said that residents of Francistown central, which is part of the CBD, are yet to be called to the city council to be consulted on the issue of the street names.
He said eventually all the residents of Francistown will be consulted about the name changes of the stadium and the airport. “Maybe they will give us three names to look at and decide on the final name,” said the mayor.
The councillor for Itekeng Ward Professor Tlou said that first of all people have to look at what a street name means. “They are not just names like we think. They are supposed to be a memorial of a remembrance. “The way we name our buildings, our monuments and our streets is very important because it impacts on the history of the city,” said Tlou. Tlou said that it was clear that there were no consultations with the residents of Francistown prior to naming the streets. He said that street names were supposed to communicate with the people and generations to come.
“It is very important how we name things in this city because generations that will come long after we are gone will know and remember the people who were dedicated in growing the city,” he said.
He said that if a street was named after Tshekedi Khama, even someone who did not personally know him would see his impact in the history of the country. “No one will ever forget Nelson Mandela because he has been honoured and streets and monuments are named after him,” he said.
He further stressed the most important thing was consultation with the community. Former mayor Shadreck Nyeku said that Francistown should get in line with the international trend and appreciate local heroes and name important edifices such as streets, stadia and airport after them. He gave an example of Oliver Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg and JFK International Airport in New York, USA.
Kgalajwe said they intended to complete their consultations by February 2014 and then council can start working on the approval of the names.