Cape Town – President Cyril Ramaphosa says he told Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa to scrap the R22 million Monumental Flag project when he called him asking for advice after South Africans reacted angrily to the plan.
Ramaphosa said this while speaking at the Black Business Council dinner in Midrand on Thursday.
“Mthethwa comes to me and says, ‘President, please tell me when I can call you’. I say, ‘Mthethwa I am in a cabinet committee meeting, we will talk afterwards’.
“I call him back and he says to me, ‘President this flag thing, which is such a wonderful initiative, it seems our people are not happy with it’, and I say, ‘Of course they are not happy with it. Cancel this thing,’” said Ramaphosa in a video.
Meanwhile in the world of cabinet decisionmakers, we have some unique insights about #FlagGate.@kgmadisa @tshidi_lee @AndiMakinana pic.twitter.com/eKX7CfhQPP
— Khaya Sithole (@CoruscaKhaya) May 19, 2022
Mthethwa recently announced that his department planned to install a gigantic flag that would serve as a national landmark and a tourist attraction.
The flag was expected to be fitted at a cost of R17 million, with geotechnical studies valued at R5 million.
However, South Africans were not impressed by the idea, resulting in Mthethwa saying that the decision would be reviewed.
ALSO READ: Minister Nathi Mthethwa says R22m flag project to be reviewed after public outcry
“Over the past few days, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture has followed and taken note of public discourse that has unfolded in respect of the envisaged monumental flag. The diversity of voices around this important heritage project are a welcome celebration of our country’s vibrant constitutional democracy and the freedoms that must be upheld beyond posterity.
“In upholding these ethos and the inalienable rights of citizens to be heard, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture has directed his department to review the process related to the monumental flag in its totality,” said the department in a statement.
Mthethwa had initially defended the plan, telling eNCA during an interview that the monumental flag would provide “continuous education” and “outlive us”.
Earlier this week, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) slammed the plan and described it as absurd, pointless, senseless and ridiculous.
ALSO READ | ‘SA has enough tourist attractions,’ – Cosatu slams Mthethwa’s R22m monumental flag project plan
“The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) calls on the South African government to scrap the Department of Arts, Culture and Sports’ ludicrous and absurd plan to blow about R22 million on a 100-metre flag monument. This vanity project is pointless and the idea that it will attract tourists is senseless and ridiculous.
“Many people around the world are being squeezed by the rising cost of living and they do not have the money to go around looking at flag monuments.
“South Africa has enough tourist attractions and does not need another inept government department to waste millions of rands on a misguided project to attract tourists,” said Cosatu.
The union joined the growing outrage from the public and political parties such as ActionSA, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and Freedom Front Plus (FF+) to name just a few.
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Compiled by Sinothando Siyolo
