Central SA
FF Plus: ‘Lichtenburg Museum fire a glaring shame’─── KEKELETSO MOSEBETSI 14:32 Fri, 27 Oct 2023
“The fact that private companies had to deploy their fire engines to the scene because the authorities' fire engines arrived without water speaks volumes.”
The FF Plus in North West has slammed the ruling party for the fire that destroyed the Lichtenburg Town Hall and Museum.
The Town Hall was partially damaged while the museum building and the artefacts inside it were completely gutted by the fire on Tuesday (24/10). Ernst Kleynhans from the FF Plus said the ruling party has once again proven nothing of any value, in this case, cultural value can be entrusted to be in their care.
“The fact that private companies had to deploy their fire engines to the scene because the authorities' fire engines arrived without water speaks volumes,” he said.
The Ditsobotla municipal spokesperson, Pius Batsile, admitted that the district firefighters were assisted by private companies as a result of low water pressure from their hydrants fleet. Kleynhans said the cultural treasures have been destroyed as a result of incompetent governance.
The Ampie Bosman building in Lichtenburg. Photo supplied
Barry Muller from the FAK expressed serious concern about the state of heritage valuables, especially in Lichtenburg. He said the recent incident at the Lichtenburg Museum should be declared a state of emergency and further called on communities to rally behind the organisation.
“The FAK calls upon the communities to support us in this matter, and if the government continues to neglect its duties and violate its heritage laws, we will take action against the government, as we did with the Northwest Agricultural Museum in Lichtenburg. FAK demands that the government, particularly the Ditsobotla Municipality, come to the table to seek a remedy for the situation.”
The Lichtenburg Museum was destroyed in the fire. Photo supplied
Muller said the Northwest Agricultural Museum has been at risk for months, and the municipality is incapable of preserving the artefacts. He said they wish to take the artefacts into safekeeping until the municipality has renovated the museum and can ensure the safety of the artefacts.
“The FAK does not necessarily want to privatise the items or Afrikaner heritage as a whole; we simply insist the state fulfil its responsibility to conserve all South African heritage in its custody.”
The collapsed roof of the building, Photo supplied
The Ampie Bosman Cultural History Museum housed exhibits on the founding of Lichtenburg in 1873, its rich diamond history, General Koos de la Rey, and the siege of Lichtenburg in the 1899-1902 Anglo-Boer War. “This is a glaring shame and reflects the ANC and its followers' contempt for South Africa and Lichtenburg's residents,” Kleynhans said.
Meanwhile, Ditsobotla Mayor, Thabo Nkhashe, and Acting North West Premier, Nono Maloyi, called on police to speed up investigations and arrest whoever might be responsible for the suspected foul play.
