The ANC in Tshwane has slammed the DA for putting up a billboard in Pretoria with the message 'ANC showers in hotels', saying it is misleading.
Image: Oupa Mokoena / Independent Newspapers
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has rejected a demand from the African National Congress (ANC) to take down a billboard in Tshwane, which features remarks made by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi.
This follows a request from the ANC’s legal team in Gauteng, who served the DA with a letter demanding that the billboard be taken down.
The billboard highlights Lesufi’s admission that he had to book into hotels to shower during the ongoing water crisis in Gauteng, a situation that has caused widespread frustration among local residents.
The billboard, unveiled on Tuesday, reads: "The ANC showers in hotels. You have no water. Vote DA to put water in your taps."
The message has sparked outrage from the ANC, which has called for the billboard's removal, claiming it is demeaning to Lesufi and damages his reputation.
The controversy surrounding the DA's billboard campaign comes amid an apology from Lesufi over his comments about the water crisis.
During a media briefing a month ago, Lesufi revealed that he had to use hotel showers due to water shortages, which was widely criticised as insensitive in light of the widespread service interruptions affecting Gauteng residents.
Lesufi later issued an apology, acknowledging that his comment “may have been interpreted in a manner that suggested the impact of water challenges differs based on one’s position in society,” which was never his intention.
“I sincerely apologise for any misunderstanding or offence caused,” he said.
However, DA Federal Council Chairperson Helen Zille has firmly rejected the request, arguing that the billboard reflects the truth of Lesufi's own statements regarding the water crisis.
Zille pointed out that the ANC has failed to provide any legal grounds for the billboard's removal.
She also emphasised that the billboard highlights a failure in the ANC’s governance, which is directly affecting the people of Gauteng.
"The ANC cannot cite any legal reason as to why the billboard should be removed. Instead, it suggests that the image is demeaning to Lesufi and tarnishes his reputation," Zille said.
"We would like to reassure the ANC that there is nothing that the DA can do to tarnish Mr Lesufi’s reputation more than he has done already."
Zille also defended the message of the billboard, stating that it only brings attention to the ongoing water crisis and the contrast between the Premier’s privileged access to hotel showers and the suffering of ordinary Gauteng residents who face daily water shortages.
“To the extent that the image is demeaning to Lesufi, that is because it reveals the truth of what the Premier said, and the water crisis that the ANC has created.
''It is nowhere near as demeaning as Lesufi’s comments must be to Gauteng residents, when he implied that he knows their suffering because he must shower in fancy hotels,” she said.
Zille pointed out the stark difference between the luxury of hotel accommodations and the hardship endured by residents who continue to struggle with basic service delivery issues.
"For the rest of us who cannot afford to pop in for a quick rinse down at the nearest boutique hotel, we continue to suffer the real consequences of the ANC’s service delivery failures," she added.
In response to the ANC's demand that the billboard be removed within 12 hours, Zille confirmed that the DA would not comply.
Instead, she urged Lesufi to demonstrate the same level of urgency in addressing the water crisis as he has shown in responding to the billboard.
"We understand that the truth hurts. However, the DA will not be meeting the ANC’s 12-hour deadline to remove our billboard. Instead, we would like to encourage Premier Lesufi to act against the water crisis with the same level of urgency as he has against this billboard," Zille said.
IOL previously reported that the ANC in Greater Tshwane slammed the DA's billboard campaign, accusing the party of "desperate electioneering stunts" aimed at misleading the public in Tshwane and Gauteng.
Joel Masilela ka Mahlangu, the ANC Greater Tshwane Regional Spokesperson, rejected the DA’s portrayal of a water crisis, calling it an exaggerated narrative meant to divert attention from the DA’s past mismanagement of the city.
"The DA has, out of desperation, embarked on a sinister media campaign to try and mislead residents of Tshwane and Gauteng that there’s a crisis that requires the supremacist DA to resolve it," Masilela said.
He emphasised that the ANC-led government in Tshwane is already addressing the water shortage, adding that the real challenges stem from the DA’s governance during its tenure in the city.
"The ANC-led government of the City of Tshwane is attending to water shortages and other service delivery challenges created largely by the DA and its allies during their eight-year reign in the city," Masilela added.
Meanwhile, the South African Communist Party (SACP) in Gauteng also condemned the DA's billboard, calling it a "political stunt" aimed at attacking Lesufi.
SACP Gauteng Provincial Spokesperson, Nkosithethile Bonga, criticised the DA for its continued campaign to demonise Lesufi, claiming the billboard represents a "sustained campaign against him through manufactured scandals and allegations."
Bonga expressed strong support for Lesufi, highlighting his stance on economic transformation, education, and anti-racism.
He also defended Lesufi’s governance, including his efforts to tackle crime, introduce transparency, and remove corrupt officials.
''These attacks represent a political and ideological offensive by the ruling bourgeois class and a direct response to the class antagonism created by a provincial government that exercises a degree of relative independence from the direct interests of monopoly capital," Bonga said.
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