Crackdown in Johannesburg hits MTN, Absa, WeBuyCars, Jeep, Dis-Chem, and Engen
The City of Johannesburg’s ongoing crackdown on illegal billboards has affected many top companies, including MTN, Absa, WeBuyCars, Jeep, Engen, and Dis-Chem.
Over the last few months, the crackdown has escalated significantly into a major revenue-recovery and compliance blitz.
The project is coordinated by the Joburg Property Company (JPC), in partnership with City Power and the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD).
The city has shifted from the previous strategy of giving warnings to aggressively dismantling unauthorised structures.
This more aggressive action is not surprising, considering that the softer approach has not been effective in the past.
The crackdown on illegal outdoor advertising began a decade ago, when the city stepped up efforts to curb the problem.
At the time, it targeted offenders, including big corporations and media owners, by instituting civil claims and laying charges against them.
“Illegal outdoor advertising in Johannesburg has been classified as a serious crime, in the same category as building hijackings,” it said.
However, this approach proved ineffective and failed to prevent companies from erecting billboards without approval.
The scale of the problem is massive, with previous city assessments estimating that as much as 78% of all outdoor advertising in the city was non-compliant.
The Executive Director for Development Planning, Eric Raboshakga, has expressed deep concern that this isn’t just the work of isolated rogue players.
Evidence has emerged of an organised network using forged permits, bribery, and even physical intimidation to keep their boards up.
Last year, the City of Johannesburg, through the Johannesburg Property Company, stepped up its enforcement efforts.
“Our operations against illegal billboards reflect a firm stance against non-compliance and enforcing by-laws,” said Musah Makhunga, the CEO of the JPC.
Makhunga added that the operation, which was launched in December 2025, will continue until all outdoor advertisers are compliant.
Crackdown affects many well-known companies
The crackdown in recent months affected many top companies, including MTN, Absa, WeBuyCars, Jeep, Engen, and Savanna.
The City of Johannesburg has started naming and shaming companies whose billboards it is removing, and posting photos of its actions.
It is not clear whether the companies mentioned were aware that their brands appeared on illegal billboards, as a media agency may have been responsible.
“These unauthorised structures don’t just bypass the city’s application process. They compromise road safety at major hubs and clutter our environment,” Makhunga said.
He warned that enforcement will intensify to stop revenue leakage and fund critical service delivery, such as pothole repairs.
Numerous campaigns were launched this year, where Makhunga and others showed how they removed illegal structures.
In March 2026, for example, it removed Absa and Savanna billboards, which were in violation of the city’s outdoor advertising by-laws.
The campaign is working well. The Joburg Property Company (JPC) collected close to R100 million in revenue in a few months after intensifying its crackdown.
Makhunga said the outdoor advertising industry had contributed only about R4 million annually to the City before the intervention.
“When we started this operation, many media owners came forward to engage with the city and enter into formal agreements,” he said.
“We started from a base of about R4 million per annum, and we are now reaching close to R100 million.”
“This demonstrates that there was significant revenue leakage within the outdoor advertising portfolio, money that rightfully belongs to the city.”
He promised to intensify enforcement operations across Johannesburg, as there are still areas where illegal outdoor advertising is mushrooming.
WeBuyCars billboard takedown
Jeep billboard takedown
Absa billboard takedown
Savanna billboard takedown
MTN billboard takedown
Dis-Chem billboard takedown
Engen billboard takedown
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IF these billboards are in fact illegal, I see a lot of legal cases in the pipeline.
Will the media give those any attention?
Large companies do not do outdoor advertising in-house.
They use Ad Agencies who in turn rent space on billboards for a campaign.
There are also many empty billboard structures around … if those were erected illegally (as the ANC CoJ claims these structures were) why have the physical structures never been taken down?
Electioneering SmokenMirrors by the political party which has never once done anything useful and meaningful without outside help.