Effective Cure for Joburg

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's threat to cut national government funding for Joburg unless the city cleans up its finances is no solution.

- Martin Williams

Nor would placing South Africa's biggest, richest city under administration be the answer.

But these could be stop-gap measures. Mayor Dada Morero is under pressure, not only from residents, but also from national and provincial government, opposition parties and rivals within the ANC. The minority parties in his government of local unity are demanding that disastrous former mayor Thapelo Amad become finance MMC. Can you imagine?

Five months ago, Cyril Ramaphosa established a presidential Johannesburg working group to "strengthen governance and financial sustainability" and improve service delivery.

Two months ago, Morero announced a "bomb squad", borrowing from the Springbok rugby tactic of bringing on high-impact players to ensure success.