RC 261102947Thando Thabethe
Monday, 2 November 2026
Mayoral candidate Helen Zille faced listener questions on Johannesburg's bankruptcy, failing water supply and policing ahead of the local elections, while Soweto voters cast ballots without taps running.
- 16:27
Zille said Joburg is bankrupt despite ample resources, citing a water system she says cost R2.6 million, when Joburg's quote for just the taps on one project was R37 million.
- 16:30
Zille said the Hearst Hill 2 reservoir is cracked and cannot be filled, and she hopes to fix the Hearst Hill reservoirs by April while replacing about 200 kilometres of pipe a year.
- 15:01
The South African Human Rights Commission says Gauteng's water crisis is caused by systemic failures in management and distribution, not a shortage of water.
- 16:20
Zille said she would rather sit in opposition than run a nine-party coalition that relies on the EFF to stay in power, saying it would mean being extorted.