Former Member of Parliament (MP) and African National Congress (ANC) National Executive Committee (NEC) member Lindiwe Sisulu has lamented the neglect of heroes' graves across South Africa.

During the commemoration of Robert Sobukwe's 100 years of legacy in Graaff-Reinet, Eastern Cape, at the weekend, Sisulu urged municipalities to take greater responsibility for the resting places of those who fought valiantly against apartheid, saying she was left saddened by the state of disrepair of Sobukwe's gravesite.

"I was not happy with the grave that we went to this morning. This is a towering man, an intellectual. A man who has trailblazed most of the path that we have travelled. I would have expected that when we got there, something in the grave would show that we care, we love, and we honour.

"There must be a clause in the municipality act that says for those who are heroes of the Struggle, their graves would be looked after by the municipalities in a particular way. That this would be the responsibility of a particular portfolio like land, and these would be monitored on a regular basis," she said.

This is not the first time Sobukwe's grave has been reported to be in a sorry state. In 2011, it was reported to be in a state of disrepair. His party, the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), subsequently called for it to be restored, with the National Heritage Council (NHC) committing itself to restore the grave of the founding father of Pan Africanism.

In 2014, his burial site was declared a heritage site during an emotional handover to his family and the Graaff-Reinet municipality.

Sisulu indicated that Sobukwe, who was jailed by the apartheid government and kept in solitary confinement on Robben Island, deserves better treatment from the government as he was regarded as the only political prisoner on the island.

She added that other countries take better care of the graves of their heroes as well as those of SA's fallen heroes who died in exile.

"I have been to other countries where the graves of their heroes are treated as if they are still alive. I was saddened when we went to fetch some of our fallen heroes in Russia and what they got in Russia was princely and kingly. I would like for the minister who determines how to use the land for cemeteries where there must be a particular way in which those who fought and died for our Struggle are dealt with in a particular way...

"What we saw today did not give me the kind of feeling that I came here to honour a former president of the PAC and a leader of the Struggle," she said.

siyabonga.sithole@inl.co.za