Avoid the weekend burial rush

The eThekwini municipality has said it was considering lowering the cost of weekday burials in an attempt to end congestion in cemeteries at weekends.

This follows the SA National Civic Organisation's condemnation of alternative burial methods proposed by the municipality's department of parks, leisure and cemeteries last week.

Because of a shortage of land, the department has proposed that communities use biodegradable coffins, recycled graves and standardised tombstones.

Department head Themba Ngcobo said the department would continue with Sunday burials despite their cost of more than R3-million a year.

"Our grave-site employees earn overtime for Sunday burials but we will continue to allow people to conduct burials then. The issue of recycling graves has been in existence for a long time. We are surprised by leaders of organisations who have accused us of turning a blind eye to African customs."

Ngcobo said Queen Thomozile KaNdwandwe Zulu was reburied earlier this year in a recycled grave.

"In 1953 the Zulu queen was buried with three other people because the government saw that burial land would become a problem in the future. Now that time has arrived," he said.

The National Civic Organisation's regional secretary, Richard Hlophe, slammed the municipality's proposals as "commercialising death".

"Sanco is prepared to engage the municipality on the issue of overcrowding in cemeteries for better planning," he said.