- Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has faced backlash for saying that he sometimes showers at a hotel amid the water crisis, with some criticising it as detached and “ from a point of privilege.
- Lesufi apologised in a statement.
- But opposition parties have not taken kindly to the apology.
Opposition parties have not taken kindly to “detached” Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s apology for his comments on dealing with the inconvenience experienced by the water crisis.
On Wednesday, the premier claimed that he sometimes showered at “a certain hotel” amid the water crisis.
“People think if there is no water, ourselves, our families, have water because there is special water, we don’t. We also go through this,” he said on Wednesday, before adding that “in some instances, I have to go to a certain hotel so that I can bathe and go to my commitments”.
“ We also go through the same inconvenience; there is no special water or special pipe that is designed to service other people and not service other people.
“Our families, our relatives, ourselves or constituencies, they suffer the same pain, we don’t have water when communities don’t have water, but what we need to do, we have the responsibility to fix the problem,” he said.
He apologised in a statement.
READ | DA to take Joburg Water, City to court over water crisis
However, Gauteng EFF chairperson Nkululeko Dunga said Lesufi’s “apologist” approach would not work.
Dunga said:
People are not looking for fake humility in the midst of a crisis. They simply want service delivery. But, of course, what he speaks of is privilege and the continuous class struggle in society, where the rich will never be overburdened by a dysfunctional state.
“It is easy for someone who is in the elite bracket in reference to salary, or worse, doesn’t have to foot any bill from his pocket, to alter their lives based on incompetence to deliver basic services.
“The narration might have been ‘we all get inconvenienced,’ but the example was tragic and signals a leader who is not in touch with reality or the conditions of the people he serves,” Dunga said.
FF Plus Gauteng leader Jaco Mulder said Lesufi’s comments came from a point of privilege.
“Most of the citizens that are affected are totally dependent on water and don’t even have the basics,” Mulder said.
He added that it was unfortunate that the water crisis was the result of years of neglect of infrastructure, poor maintenance, and ignored water plans.
“The premier is detached, and it’s because he has bodyguards, and in his own words, he has the ability to go to a hotel,” Mulder said.
However, ANC Gauteng provincial task team spokesperson Mzi Khumalo supported the apology.
He said:
We want to support the apology that the premier has provided to the people of Gauteng. We also want to encourage society to accept that apology.
Khumalo said it displayed what he described as exemplary leadership from Lesufi.
He disputed the criticism that Lesufi was aloof and detached.
ActionSA Gauteng leader Funzi Ngobeni said the water crisis was far bigger than Lesufi’s remarks.
“Many residents have gone for days, and in some cases weeks, without a reliable water supply. That is where our attention needs to stay. The premier’s apology is noted, but what residents are looking for now goes beyond words.
“They need clear accountability, realistic timelines, and visible progress in stabilising the system. This is not a short-term communications challenge; it is a long-standing infrastructure and governance problem that requires firm oversight and real consequence management where systems have failed,” he said.
READ | Lesufi’s bath blunder: Joburg leaders face growing backlash amid water crisis
Rise Mzansi leader and MP Songezo Zibi said he would not comment on Lesufi’s remarks but that his party emphasised that South Africa and Gauteng needed new leaders.
“We can’t keep voting the same people in and get a different outcome. The decline of Joburg has happened over a 20-year period. Nobody should be surprised, but people act surprised as if Dada Morero is the first bad mayor of Joburg. We have had a whole list of these,” Zibi said.
The ongoing water crisis has seen parts of Johannesburg go without water for weeks.
The DA said it would take the issue to court.
Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told journalists ahead of the State of the Nation Address (SONA) that President Cyril Ramaphosa had instructed Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina, Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Velenkosini Hlabisa, Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation David Mahlobo, and Deputy Cogta Minister Dickson Masemola not to attend the SONA and to address the water issues in Gauteng instead.
Meanwhile, the ANC Johannesburg region has warned against political opportunism during the water crisis.
The region’s secretary, Sasabone Manganye, said “they had taken note of opportunistic political actors who are seeking to exploit the current water supply challenges in Johannesburg to score cheap political points, rather than contribute meaningfully to solutions that serve the interests of our communities”.
Manganye said it was deeply irresponsible to spread misinformation, incite panic, and misrepresent facts for short-term political gain.
“The people of Johannesburg deserve leadership that is honest, solution-oriented, and grounded in the realities of governance, not theatrics designed for headlines and social media traction,” he said.
Siyamtanda Capa
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