The Soutpansberg Chamber of Commerce supports the petition against the changing of the name of the town from Louis Trichardt to Makhado.
The Chamber says that correct procedures had not been followed to affect the name change.
"This in effect means that Government acted outside the scope of the law in pushing the issue, even to the point of having it published in the Government Gazette, whilst not engaging with all interested and/or affected parties. This openly displays a flagrant disregard of the rights of South Africans of all ethnic groups," says Mr Willie Botha of the Chamber of Commerce.
The Chamber urged its members to consider signing the petition but never to force anyone to do so. "We request that you respect the rights of others by just obtaining the signatures of willing participants," says Botha. He is of the opinion that Government is being allowed to step outside the boundaries of the law by enforcing the name change.
Those who sign the petition give a mandate to the CA to oppose any name change from Louis Trichardt to Makhado. The undersigned confirm that they had never been reasonably consulted in respect of such a name change. They agree that no proper and fair administrative process had been followed. They also support the opinion that Louis Trichardt and the region will be affected adversely by a name change.
The Chairpersons Association and the Chamber of Commerce have requested that all fully completed petitions be handed in at the offices of Coxwell, Steyn, Vise & Naude on or before 4 November 2011.