‘Fix those graves’: Gauteng community safety department gets heat for pothole advice

While SA battles a pothole pandemic, the Gauteng community safety department has been slammed on social media for its advice on how to navigate the road hazards.

This week transport minister Fikile Mbalula launched a 16-month programme, Operation Vala Zonke, by the SA National Roads Agency to address the scourge of potholes. It includes a mobile app where users can report potholes and receive status updates on repairs.

Amid the launch, Gauteng community safety dished out advice, including to “slow down prior to going over the pothole” and “hold your steering wheel firmly while driving over a pothole to avoid losing control of the car”.

The post was slammed by many who said the province should fix the issue instead of tweeting advice about how to deal with it.

The community safety message was deleted but another in the thread remained.

Among those who threw shade at the post was One SA Movement leader Mmusi Maimane, who captioned a screenshot of the message “Just when you thought you had seen it all”, and shared another by Operation Vala Zonke.

Here is a look at other reactions shared online: