Staff Reporter
The ANC in Johannesburg has distanced itself from comments made by Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero after he insulted an elderly resident during a heated community meeting, saying his conduct was “fundamentally un-ANC” while also condemning allegations that he was a criminal.
The confrontation took place on Thursday during an electricity imbizo in Tshepisong, west of Johannesburg, where Morero and City Power officials were meeting residents over persistent power problems in the area.
Video clips of the exchange circulated widely on social media after a resident repeatedly accused Morero of being a criminal. The mayor responded at one point, telling the resident: “You are talking sh*t”.
Morero later apologised publicly and said he took full responsibility for his conduct. He also said he had spoken to the resident involved and that his apology had been accepted.
The incident comes as Morero seeks to remain at the helm of South Africa’s largest city following the November 4 local government elections.
He is among three names put forward by the ANC as potential mayoral candidates for Johannesburg, alongside deputy mayor and ANC Johannesburg regional chair Loyiso Masuku and veteran ANC figure Frank Chikane.
In a statement issued on Thursday night, the ANC Greater Johannesburg Region said it welcomed Morero’s apology but made clear that his behaviour towards the resident was unacceptable.
“The ANC unequivocally distances itself from conduct that is disrespectful, insulting or demeaning towards an elderly person. Such conduct is fundamentally un-ANC and inconsistent with the values, principles and political culture of our movement,” the party said.
It said its commitment to Ubuntu required political leaders to treat people with dignity and respect, particularly elderly people.
“Public representatives are servants of the people. Residents have the right to raise grievances, express frustration and hold leaders accountable. Leaders, in turn, are expected to respond with discipline, patience and humility, even when engagements become difficult,” it said.
However, the party also defended Morero against the accusation that sparked the confrontation, saying criticism of political leaders did not justify making unsubstantiated allegations.
“[W]e vehemently reject and condemn the abuse of freedom of expression and other constitutional rights to make reckless, unfounded and defamatory allegations against the executive Mayor, including the irresponsible characterisation of him as a criminal.”
City Power withdrew technical restoration and maintenance services from Tshepisong in July, citing widespread illegal connections, sabotage and repeated unlawful reconnections of electricity infrastructure.
At the time, the utility said only about 3% of more than 12,000 customers in the area were purchasing electricity legally and that an 80% vending compliance level was required as part of its normalisation programme.
At Thursday’s imbizo, City Power acting chief executive Charles Tlouane said only about 200 of nearly 12,000 households were paying for electricity.
But residents told the officials that paying customers were also suffering prolonged outages. They asked why they should bear the consequences of widespread non-payment and illegal connections.
Morero told residents the city planned to begin a phased normalisation process, including audits of electricity infrastructure and action against illegal connections. City Power said electricity supply to the area had been restored following the engagement.
