South Africans divided over BLF allocating graves to politicians
There have been mixed reactions to the Black First Land First movement (BLF) demonstration against the digging of mass graves at the Honingnestkrans cemetery, north of Tshwane.
On Saturday, 50 BLF members gained entry to the cemetery and planted crosses on graves and engraved them with names of politicians, including EFF leader Julius Malema, basic education minister Angie Motshekga and President Cyril Ramaphosa.
BLF deputy president Zanele Lwana told TimesLIVE that the government should save lives rather than prepare for Covid-19 deaths.
“Instead of saving lives and livelihoods, they dig graves. They are ready to kill us with the pandemic. All we are saying is that it is wrong to dig graves for us while we are still alive.”
Lwana said the graves were allocated to politicians because they enabled the ruling party to bury South Africans "while they're still alive".
“MPs have allowed the ruling party to go ahead with this plan. Silence is a sign of consent,” said Lwana.
She said the graves were not “closed” but were merely allocated. She said the party gave the Tshwane municipality five days to close the graves or they would return to close them.
The stunt has been criticised by the Tshwane metro. Head administrator Mpho Nawa denied that the cemetery had been earmarked as a Covid-19 burial site and said graves are routinely dug in expectation of burials.
BLF received criticism and praise over the stunt. These are some of the views shared on Twitter:
Lol yeeer ziyahlola ezi ze BLF one same whatsapp group with ANC who dug those graves, too nice BLF👏🏾
— Bulelani Mpengesi (@Buja3D) July 18, 2020
Andile is so disruptive 😂😂😂 https://t.co/1NUeQh54ek
— #IAmNtsikiMazwai (@ntsikimazwai) July 18, 2020
Agona batho ba ba useless mo South Africa more than Andile and his loonies. https://t.co/rNva5ZFYbO
— Thatogatsi (@Kolavic_) July 18, 2020
So #BLF’s Andile Mngxitama has allocated graves to Juliarse, Cyril, Fikile & many others. Pastors have warned BLF to reverse what they did, quoting Proverbs 26vs27, "Whoever digs a grave will fall into it". I’m not superstitious but this is going to be interesting 🍿🥤😜 pic.twitter.com/wI0BamInbV
— S (@SunflowerSrina) July 19, 2020
I respect #AndileMngxitama for what he did today. He assigned those mass graves to all MPs today. In Africa you don't dig a grave for a person who is still alive siqala ukuyibona nge ANC lo nto😥 #BLF pic.twitter.com/MrWNTqDN35
— Gxumisa Sibo (@GxumisaSibo) July 18, 2020
The lunatic Andile Mngxitama is at his madness again...Smh!! pic.twitter.com/kSNBvi6Gsr
— Sundowns _Fanatic 🌟 💛 👆 (@Fantastic_SoLo) July 18, 2020
The only difference between the government and the BLF is that BLF put names on the graves and the government didn't put YOUR name on them even though it's meant for YOU, the citizen. So it's either both of them are wrong or right, you can't say BLF is wrong for this. https://t.co/lYgXEKCQck
— YOUMISINTERPRETED. (@Ni_Ra27) July 18, 2020
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