Johannesburg police and city officials responded after Helen Zille, a prominent South African politician, snorkeled in a water-filled pothole in a suburban neighborhood to protest municipal mismanagement.
Zille, 75, wore a wetsuit, mask, snorkel, and pink-and-white swimming cap as she paddled through muddy water in the Johannesburg suburb. She posted a video of the stunt, which was broadcast by local television news outlets.
In the video, Zille sarcastically remarks, “And here we are with a free and wonderful Saturday-afternoon snorkel,” before submerging her head to check for fish. She said the trench has existed for about three years due to a burst water pipe that was not properly repaired despite multiple attempts.
Johannesburg, known as the “City of Gold,” faces ongoing challenges with infrastructure. The city’s roughly six million residents frequently experience water and electricity outages, along with broken roads and pipes.
Zille, a former leader of South Africa’s second-largest party and former mayor of Cape Town, announced her intention to run for mayor of Johannesburg in upcoming local elections. The current Johannesburg mayor said in a post on X that the pipe repeatedly failed over three years and was repaired the day after Zille’s stunt.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
