JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng — The Rise Mzansi Johannesburg infrastructure plan, spearheaded by party leader Songezo Zibi, aims to address the City of Johannesburg’s massive service delivery challenges through systemic reform, targeted funding, and municipal restructuring.
Rise Mzansi entered the political landscape in 2023 and secured two seats in the National Assembly during the 2024 national elections. Ahead of their first local government elections, the party, alongside the GOOD Party, has submitted candidates to contest 32 key municipalities across five provinces: Gauteng, Western Cape, Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, and Limpopo. Zibi noted strong momentum in the City of Johannesburg, the City of Tshwane, and the City of Cape Town, stating the party is on course to secure enough seats to help decide who governs these major metros.
During a recent media engagement, Zibi emphasized that the party’s campaign focuses on deep, systemic change rather than surface-level fixes. Highlighting daily struggles such as spatial inequality, poor public transport, sewage spills, water wastage, and water cuts, Zibi outlined a comprehensive strategy to overhaul the city’s failing infrastructure.
To combat these issues, Rise Mzansi has published a discussion paper—which would become a white paper if the party enters government—proposing a public infrastructure fund for Johannesburg. The initiative aims to raise R70 billion to help address an estimated R200 billion infrastructure backlog in the city, which includes aging water pipes that are up to 60 years old.
Zibi outlined three critical pillars required to fix the city’s infrastructure:
- Hiring the right people: Placing qualified individuals in the right roles, from the Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) down to the municipal entities.
- Cleaning up procurement: Overhauling project and contract management to eliminate the channels where public money is currently stolen or wasted.
- Securing new funding: Establishing the infrastructure fund, which would be capitalized by pension funds (such as the Government Employees Pension Fund), the City of Johannesburg, and resident investments. Zibi noted that resident investments would be capped to prevent the ultra-wealthy from monopolizing the fund.
Addressing the financial realities, Zibi, who serves on the standing committee on public accounts, pointed out that existing city funds are frequently drained by project delays and inflated payments. According to consultations the party has held with pension funds and investment bankers, the R70 billion infrastructure fund could be established within 12 months, pending approvals from the National Treasury. Zibi argued that the money is available, but a lack of confidence in current city leadership to manage funds appropriately remains the primary barrier.
When questioned about the practicalities of restructuring city personnel, Zibi clarified that the party does not intend to conduct unfair mass dismissals. Instead, they will implement a rigorous skills and experience audit. This process would identify and remove unqualified or underperforming staff who were hired inappropriately, a measure fully permitted under the Labour Relations Act.
Furthermore, the party plans to streamline municipal operations by collapsing Johannesburg’s 14 complex infrastructure trading entities into a single joint infrastructure company. Currently, these entities suffer from dual reporting lines and complex board structures. Consolidating them would place operations under the direct oversight of the city council, enhancing transparency, clarifying service level agreements, and ultimately improving service delivery for residents.
