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Stuff from Johannesburg

City of Johannesburg Refusing Probe on Cash Sweeping Policy

Statement by Stephen Moore MP – DA Spokesperson on Water and Sanitation:

After it emerged in October last year that the City of Johannesburg had taken approximately R4 billion directly from Joburg Water’s bank accounts through a sweeping financial arrangement, I submitted a PAIA application to the City to establish whether Joburg Water retained effective access to the funds it needs to deliver water services.

Under the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), sweeping financial arrangements are permitted to manage cash flow, provided they are properly governed and do not undermine the financial position or operational ability of a municipal entity.

The City refused to provide the policy needed to prove that this arrangement is lawful, properly authorised, and not depriving Joburg Water of access to its own funds when those funds are needed.

I escalated this refusal to the Information Regulator in January.

Despite continuous follow-ups by the Regulator, the City is stonewalling.

This raises serious concerns that the City’s sweeping arrangement is being used to plug Johannesburg’s wider cash crisis at the expense of Joburg Water and that the City may be contravening the MFMA.

The reality of the City effectively defunding Joburg Water has been clear on the ground for months, as critical water infrastructure projects have repeatedly ground to a halt because contractors are not paid on time and funds are not made available when needed.

The DA has long called for the ring-fencing of infrastructure funds so that money collected for water services is protected and used for water infrastructure, operations and maintenance, not absorbed into the City’s cash crisis.

Johannesburg residents are already suffering through dry taps, collapsing infrastructure, delayed repairs and inflated water tanker costs. As tariffs are set to increase, residents deserve to know where their money is going.

It is clear that the City is no longer a bystander while residents suffer, but an active participant in the collapse of water services.

Only a DA-led government can restore law, accountability and dignified service delivery in Johannesburg.

It is time to vote like never before. The right to water is on the ballot.

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Sophiatown: The Lost “Paris of the Transvaal”

Sophiatown’s golden age was the 1940s and 50s. It was a dense, vibrant, and often dangerous neighborhood, characterized by “backyard” rooms, shebeens (illegal speakeasies), and a sophisticated social scene. It was the birthplace of Kwaito’s ancestors and the legendary “Marabi” music—a blend of traditional African rhythms and American ragtime. The streets were home to the most iconic figures of African literature and music: Miriam Makeba found her voice here; Hugh Masekela received his first trumpet from a local priest; and the writers of Drum magazine, like Can Themba and Bloke Modisane, used the neighborhood as their muse. They dressed in Fedora hats and double-breasted suits, channeling the style of Hollywood gangsters and Harlem intellectuals, creating a world that was cosmopolitain, intellectual, and radically multi-racial.

However, the “Bohemia” of Sophiatown was an existential threat to the National Party’s vision of total racial separation. The government viewed it as a “black spot” in a white area. In 1955, the state launched Western Areas Removal Scheme. On the morning of February 9th, 2,000 heavily armed police officers moved in, forcing families into trucks at gunpoint. They were relocated to the newly established matchbox houses of the South Western Townships (Soweto), 20 kilometers away. The resistance was led by figures like Trevor Huddleston, the Anglican priest whose church, St. Joseph’s, still stands today. Despite the slogan “Ons dak nie, ons pola hier” (We are not moving, we are staying here), the bulldozers were relentless.