EFF leader Julius Malema has slammed the City of Joburg's Roads and Transport MMC Kenny Kunene, calling him lazy and incompetent for failing to address traffic light malfunctions and potholes on roads across the city.
“He is challenged and running out of depth and has no idea of what he is doing there,” Malema said during a media briefing in Johannesburg on Monday.
Kunene, a former member of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Central Command Team (CCT) who later joined the Patriotic Alliance (PA), has a strained relationship with Malema after his departure from the red berets.
Kunene has served as the MMC for Roads and Transport at the metro since February 2023, also heads the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA).
The JRA is responsible for the City’s roads network and infrastructure, including traffic lights and signage.
Traffic light failure and potholes have been long-standing issues in Johannesburg, with many busy intersections without functioning robots leading to traffic jams and accidents.
Some residents have since resorted to directing traffic at these intersections.
Malema accused Kunene of neglecting his duties as the City’s MMC of Transport.
“You can’t succeed in fixing robots. It’s not a duty of Public Safety to fix robots,” he said referring to the traffic lights.
“The robots are not working, but you never dare to call Kunene out.”
Malema continued to attack Kunene, labelling him as “lazy and incompetent” for not addressing the issue of malfunctioning traffic lights and potholes across the city.
“The guy is just incompetent and lazy. He can’t fix robots. There are a lot of potholes all over Johannesburg,” Malema added.
In response, Kunene’s spokesperson Robin van der Byl said: “We are dealing with more serious stuff at the moment regarding the Rea Vaya Bus shooting that happened last night where two of our drivers were shot and one died of his injuries.”
Van der Byl rubbished the claims as “uninformed gossip” and media statements regarding the technical questions have been submitted to the technical team.
Meanwhile, JRA spokesperson Bertha Peters-Scheepers confirmed to IOL News that the agency would respond to the questions regarding the ongoing issues with potholes and non-functioning traffic lights across the City of Johannesburg on Wednesday.
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