By OBAKENG MAJE
18 November 2024- The residents of Taung call on the North West Department of Arts, Culture, Recreation and Sport to restore the Taung Cultural Calabash event to its former glory. The residents were left in awe after the department allegedly announced that, the event that was supposed to take place in November 2024, has been rescheduled to 27 February until 2 March 2025.
Taung Cultural Calabash historically takes place during Heritage Month and is a great opportunity to develop local talent and create a form of income for the surrounding Taung community – which it so desperately needs.
The Chairperson of Re Aga Taung Civic Organisation, Modisaotsile Lebitse said the North West Department of Arts, Culture, Recreation and Sport, does not take the people of Taung seriously. Lebitse said the Taung Cultural Calabash event was established back in 1994, as an annual youth-based arts festival and soon found a sponsor in the Transnet Foundation.
“However, it was allegedly marred with corruption, mismanagement of funds, and maladministration. This allegedly forced the country’s transport parastatal, Transnet, to pull the plug. So, as residents of Taung, we demand answers.
“It cannot be normal to see the Taung Cultural Calabash event being reduced to nothing. Last week, we had a consultative engagement meeting with the North West Department of Arts, Culture, Recreation and Sport representatives, Neo Jobeta and Thabo Mabe,” he said.
Lebitse further said they were told that there will be no Taung Cultural Calabash event this year. He added that they said the event will only take place on 27 February until 2 March 2025.
“So, we are so disappointed and I just wonder why the department is doing this to us. We are all demoralised and most artists did not attend that meeting. We do not even know when the next meeting will be.
“The department does not care and what is disappointing is that Jobeta is one of our own. He comes from Buxton village, in Taung. So, he was supposed to be at the forefront of defending this event,” said Lebitse.
He said: “This happens year in and out. We haven’t had a smooth-running event since 2017. So, we call on the department to get its house in order.
“They also mentioned that they have roped in the new service provider because they were not happy with the service of the previous one.”
In 2022, the Democratic Alliance (DA), called on the North West MEC for Arts, Culture, Recreation and Sport, Virginia Tlhapi came clean on alleged tender irregularities surrounding Taung Cultural Calabash.
The then DA North West Spokesperson on Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation, Winston Rabotapi said the allegations of corruption surrounding the Taung Cultural Calabash festival is concerning. Rabotapi said disgruntled artists, along with some community members, staged a protest outside the Mmabana Taung offices, where they raised serious allegations of tender irregularities implicating the Department of Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation and demanded that the event be put on hold.
“The Taung Cultural Calabash will host big names in its line up like Casper Nyovest, Thebe and Douglas Mosadi, but allegations of false advertising on festival flyers and that the event is no longer up to standard have also come to light.
“Taung Cultural Calabash is not the only event marred by allegations of corruption. He said the R55 million Mahika Mahikeng Cultural Music Festival scheduled to take place in December also came under scrutiny following allegations of tender irregularities,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tlhapi said: “Taung Cultural Calabash event is still on and Mmabana Foundation has conducted auditions across all four districts and there are winners to such. So, all participants will be performing during the event.”
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