Township Tourism Sold to the Highest Bidder, Churchill Mrasi

Siyabonga Mbatha

Mr Churchill Mrasi has come a long way since campaigning for Township Tourism.

Photo: Nonhlanhla Kambule-Makgati

A QUICK perusal professional profile of Mr Churchill Mrasi reveals that, amongst others, he is an astute businessman, entrepreneur extra-ordinaire and a born leader, whose business track record stretches across the length and breadth of the South African economic and commercial spheres. Mr Mrasi is currently the National President of the South African Leisure, Tourism and Hospitality Association (SALTHA; Acting-National Chairperson of the National African Federated Chamber of Commerce (NAFCOC) and Chairperson of NAFCOC’s National Working Committee, as well as Chairperson of Greater Soweto Business Forum (GSBF)all-in-one.

However, the business of the day as we meet him at his spacious office situated on the upper floor of Commerce House situated at the Orlando West Industrial Park, is to find out what role the South African Leisure, Tourism and Hospitality Association (SALTHA) plays in the local tourism industry.

`Bra Church’, as he is affectionately called, is quick to explain that for the organisation to take shape, one needs to understand that SALTHA stands on three feet, namely leisure, tourism and hospitality. “Currently, we have not made much of an impact on the leisure part of our mandate, due to lack of capacity.” There is a telling pain in his eyes as `Bra Church’ laments how the tourism industry is still white-dominated. Press for clarity on this somehow laden statement, he tells a story of an industry where there are no regulations to protect the local township tourism from bullying tactics by those who have strategically `clubbed together’ to ensure that they have a monopolistic control.

“They have closed ranks to ensure that they benefit the most from Black History”, he reiterates. Asked about the State’s role in the protection of infantry industries, Mr Mrasi sharply points out to the deployment of incompetent cohorts who, unwittingly, become part of this counter-revolution, while blaming it partly on the lack of political will by those in the Government Departments to decisively remedy the situation.

To paint a clearer picture of the dire situation,Mr Mrasi claims that the Tourism Levy mainly benefits the very white-owned tourism businesses, their only qualifying criteria being that they claim to `promote the country abroad’. He further juxtaposes this claim with the fact that about 70-percent of Whites had never been to our townships, conceiving the notion of promoting certain sections of South Africa abroad as a highly questionable one.

`Bra Church’ is deeply concerned by the recent youth-unemployment numbers released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), which is now at 55 percent. This does not auger well, he says, when one considers the employment opportunities that could be created by this sector, all things being equal.

It is the same youth-unemployment that gives him sleepless nights, and is on top of his and SALTHA’s list of priorities. Perhaps the fact that SALTHA is at an advanced stages of launching their own Hamba/Travel App resonates with their plight to alleviate youth-unemployment through integrated programmes, which will soon be available.

As a parting shot, Mr Mrasi gives Soweto WayaWaya a brief insight into the future plans which include designing tourist packages meant to make township tourism much more attractive to both local, as well as international tourists. As to who the role players in this new venture are, he advises us to wait and see, as only time will tell.