WATCH | Mashaba blames Zille for Joburg’s decline amid mayoral race

ActionSA’s mayoral candidate Herman Mashaba has accused his rival DA mayoral candidate Helen Zille of collapsing the City of Johannesburg’s administration.

This comes as the two political heavyweights square off in a high-stakes contest for the city’s top office.

Speaking on the Sunday Times Politics Weekly podcast, Mashaba claimed Zille has been a primary catalyst for the city’s instability.

“It is because of Helen Zille that the city of Joburg is where it is,” Mashaba said. “The common denominator has always been Zille.”

Mashaba, who served as Joburg mayor under the DA between 2016 and 2019, argued that former DA mayor Mpho Phalatse, who was ousted via a motion of no confidence in 2023, would still be in power if she had received Zille’s backing.

At the time, the DA’s federal executive rejected Phalatse’s proposal to form a strategic voting bloc with the EFF to counter the ANC-led coalition. The DA leadership cited a refusal to collaborate with a party that uses inflammatory rhetoric against white South Africans.

“We put Phalatse in [office] against Helen’s wishes,” Mashaba explained. “And who engineered her removal? Helen Zille collapsed the mayoral. If Zille had supported Phalatse, the city would still be run by her.”

When questioned about his personal relationship with Zille, Mashaba did not mince words, stating he remains “angry” given the current state of the metro.

“Residents are suffering because of her. It is because of Helen Zille that the City of Johannesburg is where it is today.”

Watch the full episode of Politics Weekly on Sunday.

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