First published in the Daily Maverick 168 weekly newspaper.
Letters spelling out “National Assembly” have appeared on the gable above the pillars of the people’s House. It’s ludicrous. The National Assembly doesn’t need letters to spell out what it is.
That building is central to the ceremonial, like the president pausing for the national anthem before the State of the Nation Address – the next is scheduled for 11 February 2021 – and to demonstrations regularly held at the gates of Parliament.
One reason Madiba’s bust was placed in front of the National Assembly in 2014 was precisely because that building is well-known and high-profile – and the bust, like the National Assembly entrance, is within plain view from the street.