LOCAL ELECTIONS 2026: Kenny Kunene tells Joburg, ‘God gives light during the day; I will at night’

Launching his campaign for Joburg mayor on Saturday, the Patriotic Alliance’s Kenny Kunene committed to tackling hijacked buildings and made bold claims about his achievements as transport MMC.

On Saturday, 19 September, Johannesburg Transport MMC and Patriotic Alliance (PA) deputy president Kenny Kunene launched his campaign to lead the City, prioritising issues including hijacked buildings, informal settlements and debt relief for residents behind on their municipal payments.

Kunene claimed to have a strong track record in government and suggested he would tackle issues that current City leaders (the PA is part of the governing coalition) and other parties had neglected.

“I have done more roads, I have fixed more potholes than any other MMC that has ever operated since democracy. I have stabilised my department [and have] a work ethic that is results-driven [which] has been seen at [the Johannesburg Roads Agency] and the transport department in general,” he told supporters in Aeroton.

Daily Maverick reported in June that the Johannesburg Roads Agency’s (JRA’s) fleet was grounded due to financial constraints, while News24 reported in August that the City’s asphalt plant was offline due to a supplier issue.

Despite these issues, Kunene maintained he was the right candidate to lead Joburg.

“The street lights can be resolved. When I become mayor, I have committed to a safe City of Johannesburg. Every electric pole, every light must work and give people light. I am committed that as God gives you light during the day, I will give you light at night,” he told supporters on Saturday.

In Johannesburg, the PA emerged as kingmakers during the no-confidence vote against then mayor Mpho Phalatse, from the DA, in 2023. Her removal hinged less on performance than on political bargaining, with the DA’s refusal to accept Kenny Kunene on the mayoral committee sealing her fate.

The PA won eight of Joburg’s 270 council seats in the 2021 elections, but now it holds 11 seats after several by-election victories, suggesting that the party continues to grow in Joburg and could be influential in coalition negotiations after the elections.

“The PA will continue to grow because it’s the only party that is in touch with South Africans across racial lines,” party supporter Brendan Pietersen (70) told Daily Maverick on Saturday.

Alongside him, Andy Beukes (56) said, “This is why we both decided to vote for the PA in the upcoming elections.”

“Patriots, we are going to reclaim hijacked buildings. We have already started as the Patriotic Alliance,” said Kunene on Saturday.

“You have seen last week, we were showing videos where we have taken out an Angolan hijacker out of a house and put a South African family,” Kunene told the crowd.

On the City’s water and electricity problems, Kunene said usage continued to rise while the revenue the City collected was shrinking. He blamed the situation on hijacked buildings, informal settlements and illegal connections.