Twitter showdown: Herman Mashaba vs Derek Hanekom

Herman Mashaba is not taking the Twitter shots from Derek Hanekom lying down.

Earlier this week tourism minister Derek Hanekom tweeted that Johannesburg was "filthier" since Herman Mashaba became mayor in 2016.

In one tweet, Hanekom said: "@HermanMashaba you promised so much but parts of the city are filthier than ever before."

In another post, Hanekom complained that there was litter "on every corner" of Jozi's streets.

Hanekom said: "Surely you can do better than this?" 

Mashaba retaliated, diplomatically at first but a couple of tweets later, he took on a more confrontational approach.

The mayor began by inviting the minister to join in the city's #AReSebetseng campaign.

'A re sebetseng' is SeSotho for 'let us work'. It is Johannesburg's monthly clean-up campaign that encourages residents to collect and dispose of litter in their communities. 

Perhaps Mashaba's most intriguing response to Hanekom was the tweet that blamed none other than Hanekom's wife Trish for the mess Johannesburg now finds itself in. 

Mashaba's tweets did little to change Hanekom's view of Johannesburg.

When Twitter user Neo Merafi asked Hanekom if he was aware of Mashaba's clean-up campaign, Hanekom dismissed #AReSebetseng as "a once a month media campaign."