The City of Cape Town’s name for its new anti-littering mascot is absolute rubbish.
Despite perfectly good suggestions such as Vullis-city, Osama “bin” Laden and My Cousin Binnie, Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis went with the unimaginative “Bingo”.
A few weeks ago the City asked mense to vote between four names for its new mascot, as part of its Keep Cape Town Clean campaign.
Some worthy contenders were Nolitha (no litter, get it?), and Phyllis-blik.
But the mayor said Bingo ticked the right boxes.
“Cape Town, thank you for all your feedback and enthusiasm in helping us to name our City’s new anti-littering mascot!
“We can reveal that, taking public feedback into account, our City’s new mascot name will be Bingo! We are truly delighted by this name suggestion from you, the public.
“Not only does the name spell out exactly where we want the litter to go, it’s also a name that is well known to all generations due to a popular singalong tune.
“So Bingo is our mascot’s name-o, and we are now calling on you to bin it in the Bingo Bin!”
The new mascot will now go on a roadshow to be introduced to residents across the city.
In particular, Bingo will promote awareness of the green bins.
“Look out for our city-wide campaign to bring Bingo to a school, intersection or public place near you. Our message is simple: Bingonever litter, and always bin it in the Bingo Bin! We can keep Cape Town clean together,” added Grant Twigg, Mayco Member for Urban Waste Management.