‘Clean the city. It’s filthy’ — Tito Mboweni takes aim at Joburg coalition

Former minister Tito Mboweni has fired shots at the multi-party coalition governing Johannesburg after a visit to the city’s CBD and surrounding areas.

He shared pictures of his “tour” of Hillbrow and central Johannesburg and shared his thoughts on the state of the area.

“The business buzz is great. 51 Plein Street, the former ANC HQ, now a block of flats, is buzzing like New York City. But hey, the CBD and Hillbrow are stinking filthy. How can people live like this? Not in Kigali, Rwanda,” he wrote alongside pictures of trash-filled pavements.

He claimed the city was “spending too much energy on coalition politics and in the process had created a breeding ground for deadly diseases”.

“Remove the rubbish for the sake of the health of the citizen. Clean the city. It's filthy. The bubonic plaque might visit us.”

The high levels of pollution in the city has been a major concern for residents.

The South African Human Rights Commission recently announced an inquiry into the environmental pollution and raw sewage pouring into the Wemmer Pan lake just outside of the city centre.

It follows complaints from local businesses and media reports about the iconic lake being heavily polluted and covered by a shiny, oily layer.

Those who complained said there is also a stench of hydrogen-sulphide around the area, and the pollution has affected the local community, businesses and those who use the lake for recreation.

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