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Stuff from Johannesburg

Cllr Dada Morero needs to provide answers on the ongoing Joburg water crisis

Dear Editor

The DA in Johannesburg has noted that Cllr Dada Morero will be conducting oversight inspections of various water reservoirs and towers across the City, amid Stage 2 restrictions that have affected homes, businesses, schools, and even health facilities like Rahima Moosa and Helen Joseph, which have struggled to operate due to demand for water outstripping the supply from their respective boreholes and emergency tankers.

His inspection of the water reservoirs and towers barely scratches at the problems that Johannesburg is facing.

This is nothing short of a crisis, on the back of rolling blackouts that oscillate between stages 3 and 4.

Parts of the City have been without water for days with no political leadership, with only a notice that Cllr Morero will be inspecting water infrastructure.

From the time Cllr Morero became aware of water cuts across Joburg, he should have been on the ground, not days later when water is being restored to many parts, although at a trickle.

Having identified that the City’s water infrastructure was collapsing, the Joburg Multi-Party Government allocated close to R800 milllion to water supply infrastructure and R600 million to sanitation facilities in the 2022/23 budget which went live on 1 July 2022.

The service delivery instability caused by the illegal removal of the Multi-Party Government Executive is already starting to show. Residents have little to no communication on the ongoing water crisis; We have received reports of late to no refuse collection in parts of the City; and with no end in sight for rolling blackouts it is unclear whether the work to rollout Independent Power Producers (IPPs) will continue.

For the sake of residents, we hope that Cllr Morero is able to provide answers and a plan for the water crisis, which has either left residents without water for days, or an intermittent supply of water. His inspection of water infrastructure will merely be a public relations stunt, if a plan is not articulated.

If this is a sign of governance to come, the state of Joburg will only regress.

It is therefore vital that we pursue our court challenge to reverse the illegal actions of last week, and regroup the coalition so that the repair and rebuild of Joburg can continue under a leadership that cares and is in tune with the needs of residents.

Regards

Dr Mpho Phalatse
DA Johannesburg Leader

Category:

The FNB Stadium: Football

The 2010 World Cup turned the FNB Stadium into a global icon. It hosted both the opening match and the final, where Spain defeated the Netherlands to claim the trophy. Perhaps most poignantly, it was the site of the “nearly” moment for African football when Ghana’s Black Stars came within a crossbar’s width of reaching the semi-finals. For Johannesburgers, the stadium is more than a soccer pitch; it is the home of the Soweto Derby, the fierce rivalry between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates that can see nearly 100,000 fans descend on the precinct in a sea of gold and black.

As of 2026, the FNB Stadium continues to be a versatile giant. It has hosted some of the world’s biggest musical acts, from U2 to Justin Bieber, and remains a primary venue for national celebrations and political rallies. It stands as a landmark of “New South Africa” architecture—rejecting the cold, European brutalism of the city’s past in favor of a design that feels earthy, indigenous, and undeniably grand. It is the one place in Johannesburg where the entire city, from the mansions of Sandton to the matchbox houses of Soweto, comes together to breathe as one.