President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on traditional leaders to take ownership of the initiation process that young men undergo.
Ramaphosa was delivering his annual address to members of the House of Traditional Leaders in Parliament.
He called on traditional leaders to make sure that the cultural practice remains safe.
“It cannot be that every year we say the same thing about work that needs to be done but the death toll continues to rise. We urge traditional leaders as custodians to take this culture back into your hands and improve accordingly. Don’t let thugs and gangsters take this over,” says Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa asked traditional leaders to work with the police to ensure that those who are responsible for the maiming and deaths of young men are brought to book.
“We further call on you to work with SAPS to ensure those involved with these unscrupulous practices are arrested and charged because quite often as these things happen, it is generally known who these people are,” says Ramaphosa.
[Photos] The official opening of the National House of Traditional Leaders addressed by
President Cyril Ramaphosa in Cape Town.#NHTL pic.twitter.com/Dkvk8FU7Kf— NationalCoGTA (@NationalCoGTA) February 25, 2020
In this video, President Cyril Ramaphosa says the safety of cultural practices need to be improved
