![Professor Njabulo Ndebele, Minister Alan Winde and Premier Helen Zille at the Nelson Mandela statue unveiling](https://www.westerncape.gov.za/sites/www.westerncape.gov.za/files/prof._njabulo_ndebele_minister_alan_winde_and_premier_helen_zille.jpg)
As part of the ongoing commemorations of the centenary of Nelson Mandela’s legacy , the Western Cape Government and the City of Cape Town unveiled a life-size bronze statue of Tata Madiba on Tuesday, 24 July 2018 at the City Hall in Cape Town.
Among the delegates were Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Premier of the Western Cape, Helen Zille, the Mayor of Cape Town, Patricia de Lille, Professor Njabulo Ndebele from the Nelson Mandela Foundation, and Minister of Economic Opportunities, Alan Winde.
The statue has been placed on the same spot where Madiba addressed thousands of people for the first time on 11 February 1990, after being freed on the same day. The statue will now serve as a constant reminder of that iconic day, and the many years of sacrifice that led to the moment.
The sculpture was created by artists Xhanti Mpakama and Barry Jackson, who were commissioned by Koketso Growth, a company run by Dali Tambo.
Professor Ndebele said, “When we unveil the statue, it will be useful to remember that we are not only just unveiling someone who is no longer with us, therefore, is associated with the past, although we still remember a great deal of the past, but to remember that we are also unveiling a sense of the future that we represent.”
“The strong ties that bind Cape Town and Tata Madiba together cannot be broken now, we must continue to celebrate but also to teach this history. Yes, the statue will be here for future generations to be reminded of the struggle for our freedom but what is more important, is for the next generation to remember the values that we fought for,” said the Executive Mayor, Patricia de Lille.
Premier Helen Zille said, “The best way to honour the legacy of Nelson Mandela, is to ensure that we build an economy that creates opportunities for more citizens. This statue will form part of the new Madiba Legacy tourism route, which is expected to attract many more visitors to our region. The route begins at Robben Island, and moves through historic landmarks such as parliament, before ending here at City Hall.”
“28 years ago there was a country awashed in unfairness, immorality, bitterness and pain that was despised by the rest of the world. We had lost the ability to see each other as fellow members of the human family. To me, his greatest time for me was restoring our pride and self-belief,” said Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
Minister of Economic Opportunities, Alan Winde said, “As the Western Cape Government, we wanted to create something that not only honours the man that Nelson Mandela was, but which will ensure that the citizens of the country he loved so dearly will also benefit. The legacy project is about growing tourism, expanding the economy to create new jobs and about telling the stories of the Western Cape in a way that honours its people.”