South Africa will elect municipal councillors on Wednesday, November 4, and the contest for control of Johannesburg is drawing particular attention. The city has experienced unstable coalitions and around ten mayoral changes in less than a decade. The Democratic Alliance, led in the campaign by Helen Zille, and Action SA’s Herman Mashaba, a former mayor, are both seeking to take control from the African National Congress (ANC).
Public services and the city’s finances have become key campaign issues. Residents in several areas have faced water cuts, prompting protests. In Melville, demonstrator Angy Hammond said she had last had running water on her daughter’s birthday, October 18. She also blamed unrepaired leaks for water losses, despite calls for residents to conserve supplies.
Other services have deteriorated, with libraries, swimming pools and museums closed or in poor condition. Yunus Chamda, coordinator of the civil society coalition Joburg Crisis Alliance, also pointed to problems with roads, waste collection and electricity infrastructure. He warned that Johannesburg could continue to decline without a solution to its financial difficulties.
Although Johannesburg is South Africa’s richest city, its cash reserves cover only around two weeks of operations. The municipality has also recently been criticised over financial irregularities. Jugal Mahabir, a local governance researcher at the Public Affairs Research Institute, said the National Treasury has considered the city to be in financial distress for the past three years.
Mahabir said the municipality has redirected funds intended for public entities, contributing to years of underinvestment in infrastructure maintenance and repairs. As systems fail, losses make it harder for the city to collect revenue and meet its costs. He also cited poor financial management, weak budget planning, corruption-related losses, irregularities in public procurement and external pressures.
The outgoing ANC mayor has rejected the claim that the city is in crisis. South Africa’s finance minister, who is also from the ANC, has expressed greater concern and promised a three-year support plan for local authorities. Restoring Johannesburg’s finances will be a major challenge for its next mayor.
Sources: RFI.