On Thursday, to mark what would have been Philip Kgosana’s 81st birthday, Cape Town Mayor Patricia de Lille officially unveiled Philip Kgosana Drive.
De Lille’s spokesperson, Xolani Koyana, said it was part of the City’s commitment to redress injustices and build an inclusive city.
In August, it was reported that the council had approved the renaming of De Waal Drive after the late Kgosana, a Struggle leader and former regional
secretary of the Pan Africanist Congress in the Western Cape.
Kgosana was just 23 when he led an anti-pass march of
30 000 protesters from Langa and Nyanga along De Waal Drive on March 30, 1960.
De Lille said it was a turning point in South Africa’s history, and “Kgosana showed his mantle as a young man and steadfast leader when he chose peaceful engagement in the face of a tense situation”.
“Philip spent some of his youth days in Langa and as a student at the University of Cape Town, he rose to prominence in politics here in Cape Town as the regional secretary of the Pan-Africanist Congress.
“For these reasons, he is very much a son of Cape Town.
“He was a humble man, a servant of this country who sacrificed a lot in his life for what he believed in: the liberation of the people of South Africa from an oppressive apartheid regime.”
After being forced into exile he continued his studies, and worked for the United Nations Children’s Fund where he aided refugees.
This earned him international commendation for his two
decades of dedicated service.