JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng — The Patriotic Alliance (PA) has officially unveiled its comprehensive mayoral plan for the City of Johannesburg, with mayoral candidate Kenny Kunene and party leader Gayton McKenzie detailing bold strategies to tackle service delivery failures, reclaim hijacked buildings, and navigate post-election coalitions. Speaking at a campaign rally in Aereton, the leadership outlined their vision ahead of the party’s official election manifesto launch, scheduled for September 26 in Bloemfontein.
Kunene emphasized accelerated service delivery through targeted initiatives, including Operation Restore, Operation Lucisa, and Operation Lungisa. A central pillar of his proposal is to unify the management of Joburg Water, City Power, and the Johannesburg Roads Agency to eliminate current coordination failures that delay repairs. He highlighted the city’s aging water infrastructure and population growth as primary drivers of ongoing leaks and reservoir shortages, proposing a public-private partnership with Rand Water to fund critical infrastructure upgrades.
Addressing the electricity crisis, Kunene committed to engaging Eskom to resolve unfair flat-rate billing and prepaid meter discrepancies in disadvantaged areas such as Soweto, Alexandra, and Orange Farm. He also pledged to implement municipal debt relief within his first 100 days in office, specifically writing off debt for households in properties valued under R1 million. Kunene noted that this measure was passed as a council motion in November 2023 but remains unimplemented by the current municipal administration.
The PA mayoral candidate stressed the urgent need to stop revenue bleeding from hijacked properties, factories, and informal settlements with illegal utility connections. Kunene cited recent PA-led interventions to remove illegal occupiers and restore homes to South African families in areas like Brixton and Orange Grove as proof of concept for his broader city-wide reclamation strategy. Furthermore, he called on the provincial government to fulfill its R4 billion unfunded mandate for health and library services, which he argued is currently draining municipal revenue collected from residents.
Party leader Gayton McKenzie took a pragmatic approach to post-election governance, stating the PA does not expect an outright majority in Johannesburg but is willing to form a coalition with any party that can deliver tangible results. “The political space is a terrain of power,” McKenzie stated, explicitly floating a potential governing alliance involving the ANC, EFF, and MK parties in the metro to secure a functional majority.
McKenzie also doubled down on the PA’s strict stance against undocumented migration, arguing that illegal foreigners strain public housing and schools while benefiting from cheap labor demands. He asserted that under Kunene’s leadership, deportations would be aggressively enforced.
During the rally, McKenzie dismissed current political polling, criticized the Democratic Alliance’s record in the Western Cape, and addressed recent public discourse regarding local creatives. Defending his support for the arts, he clarified that while he respects public figures like Bonang Matheba, the signing of the copyright amendment bill falls under the President’s purview, not a minister’s. Additionally, McKenzie revealed that the party is working to secure a financial guarantee within the next two weeks to potentially bring the Grand Prix to Johannesburg.
As the November 4 local government elections approach, the Patriotic Alliance is positioning its Johannesburg ticket as a decisive, action-oriented alternative, promising to leverage both municipal authority and strategic coalitions to overhaul the city’s governance model.
