Check us on Tuesday: Joburg mayor denies that service delivery will stop post G20

Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero has denied claims that the recent increase in service delivery activity across the country’s economic hub is nothing more than a cosmetic clean-up for the G20 Summit.

Over the weekend, heads of state and senior representatives from around the world gathered at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Soweto.

Speaking to the media on the final day of the G20 Leaders’ Summit, Morero said that “it’s simple, check us on Tuesday.”

“If we are not on the ground on Tuesday then it means we are doing it for the G20.”

Morero said the city had long possessed the capacity to improve but was held back by management failures and internal blockages.

He said recent political alignment in the mayoral committee had created the stability needed to make progress.

“Part of the problem … is a management issue. So deal with that, and that is why we’re beginning to see results,” he said.

“Political stability ensures the level of your mayoral committee … all of us are focused on one objective, on one job, and that is why we are seeing the results now.”

Johannesburg’s steady decline, marked by crumbling infrastructure, service failures, and worsening urban decay, had become so severe that national intervention was deemed necessary.

In March 2025, President Cyril Ramaphosa stepped in, warning city officials to urgently address the problems ahead of the G20 summit.

“The environment that one observed in Johannesburg was not a pleasing environment. I say this so that we can improve immensely,” he said.

By May, Morero responded by launching a high-impact “bomb squad” task team to arrest the city’s slide.

Led by ANC veteran Snuki Zikalala, the group comprises seasoned public servants brought in to stabilise and restore the struggling metro.

Morero noted that real improvements only began mid-year. “It took a long time … from November to around June, to set up the systems.”

“Now we are seeing the results that we want. They are still not really where we want them to be. There are still issues … to get management and supervision to happen.”

Not everyone is sold

In the weeks leading up to the G20 summit, Morero and Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi faced criticism for appearing to rush long-delayed fixes to potholes, traffic lights, street lighting, and litter.

Lesufi rejected the claims, saying the province had been preparing “intensively for months”.

“We’ve worked extremely hard to ensure that we fix the street lights, the traffic lights, fill the potholes and attend to issues that need to be attended to,” he said.

He added that weekly meetings with national ministers and the provincial executive had driven progress and would continue beyond the summit.

During the summit, the Premier posted “Well done! Let’s continue to beautify the entire province. We now know we can.”

The DA has dismissed the positive portrayal, accusing the government of merely staging a temporary clean-up for the G20 while residents still endure ongoing service failures.

Their Joburg caucus wrote that “as the City pours resources into beautifying G20 routes, other areas continue to suffer neglect—crumbling infrastructure, poor services, and communities are left behind.”