The R22 million statues of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo stand wrapped ahead of their official unveiling in Durban, as debate continues over municipal spending priorities. Picture Credit: X
By Aisha Zardad
Durban – The Mayor of eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, Cyril Xaba, has defended the R22 million spent on statues of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo, saying the project forms part of a broader strategy to stimulate tourism and economic growth in Durban.
The statues of the two liberation leaders are set to be unveiled by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday.
The project has drawn criticism from opposition parties, who argue that the municipality should prioritise addressing persistent water and electricity outages instead of investing in monuments.
Speaking during an engagement with Independent Media editors on Monday, Xaba said the City could not halt long-term economic initiatives while simultaneously tackling service delivery challenges.
“The two giant statues of our liberation stalwarts that will be unveiled by the president tomorrow form part of this drive to create additional tourism offerings in the city. Such projects play a key role in catalysing tourism growth. If you want to spin the money, you must first spend the money,” Xaba said.
He added that Durban’s tourism sector is showing signs of recovery, returning to pre-COVID-19 growth levels, citing increased visitor numbers during the 2025 festive season.
To support this trajectory, Xaba said the municipality is expanding tourism infrastructure to develop new attractions aimed at encouraging longer visitor stays.
He pointed to existing developments such as the Moses Mabhida Stadium, the Durban International Convention Centre and uShaka Marine World as examples of strategic investments designed to position eThekwini as a destination for major sporting events, conferences and entertainment.
However, the DA’s mayoral candidate in eThekwini, Haniff Hoosen, has called on Ramaphosa to cancel the unveiling ceremony.
In an open letter to the president, Hoosen said the R22 million expenditure comes at a time when residents continue to endure water and electricity disruptions.
“Mr President, your visit to Durban is welcomed but it must not be about the unveiling of statues. It must be about your working group you appointed. It must be about holding City officials to account. People of eThekwini don’t need statues but water,” Hoosen said.
During the same engagement, Xaba also urged residents to make use of the City’s debt relief programme while it remains available.
Last year, the municipality introduced a 50% discount on outstanding rates and utility debt, structured across three payment options: a once-off 50% settlement with the remainder written off; a 50% payment spread over three months; or full settlement within six months without interest.
Xaba described the programme as a temporary measure aimed at assisting over-indebted customers, particularly businesses, but cautioned that it could not be sustained indefinitely.
“The City created this programme to relieve over-indebted customers, particularly businesses, to get back to profitability as this assists in boosting economic growth. However, in the long run it would collapse the City’s financial system.
“As much as we want to assist customers, we have realised that it would be counter-productive in the long run because it discourages people from paying for services,” he said.
City Manager Musa Mbhele said there had been a positive response when the programme was introduced in June last year.
