JOHANNESBURG - If South African politics had a “most likely to go viral” category, then Helen Zille would be leading the mile- or sailing through it- literally.
This week, Zille was back at it. This time, not swimming or walking but literally kayaking through a flooded street in Soweto, turning a long-standing drainage issue in the community into a floating complaining moment.
@helenzille In the 2025/26 financial year the City of Joburg only spent 26% of their capital budget. That means money that was supposed to be invested in critical projects, such as stormwater infrastructure, was either stolen or mismanaged. You can change this by registering to vote for a DA government! 🗳️🇿🇦 #BelieveInJoburg #Zille4Mayor ♬ original sound - Helen Zille
But the thing is, this is not the first time; in fact, it is slowly becoming her signature.
Joburg’s many public facilities for swimming
Before rowing through the flooded Soweto street, Zille, with her aqualung cup, swimming cap, took a splash into a pool of water that had been retained in a large pothole that developed over three years on a street Douglasdale, Johannesburg.
This was a result of a pipe burst that had been left unrepaired for over three years.
It was not long before the City of Johannesburg responded to the scene to fix the steel pipe.
@helenzille This is one of Joburg’s many public facilities for swimming. No opening hours and no maintenance plan, yet somehow it keeps expanding… 🏊♀️🚧 #BelieveInJoburg ♬ original sound - Helen Zille
A lekker summer day in Joburg
Limbro Park, where millions of litres of water had been gushing out of a burst pipe for almost a week, was not spared.
With her umbrella out, pants pulled up, and a bottle of water, Zille showcased the grim picture of water being wasted. This amid water issues within the City. At the back of her concern was the need to fix infrastructure.
@helenzille Joburg municipality wastes millions of litres of water every day while communities have dry taps. In Linbro Park a burst pipe has been leaking clean, drinkable water for over a week. Residents aren’t the ones who need to reduce their consumption - Joburg Water must get its act together! 💦 #BelieveInJoburg #Zille4Mayor ♬ original sound - Helen Zille
Gone fishing, but nothing found
Another stop for Zille was the famous public swimming pool in Windsor. The facility, which was once favoured as it served the community, has gone to ruins.
Showing the pool, which is now filled with murky water, Zille sat with her camp chair and a fishing rod, describing how this public facility had been neglected.
It has become a site of danger and has been exposed to illegal activity, as she blamed the ANC, PA, and ActionSA.
@helenzille Gone fishing but found nothing. Time to clean the pond. Register to vote at check.da.org.za 🗳️🇿🇦 #BelieveInJoburg #Zille4Mayor ♬ original sound - Helen Zille
Trying to find the Mayor of Joburg
All within a few centimetres of each other are potholes, sinkholes, and water leaks in Johannesburg CBD.
In the same street, Zille showed tar lying all over, disrupting one lane. This poses a danger to cars driving at night.
@helenzille All within a few centimetres of each other: potholes, sinkholes, water leaks and sewage spills. Right here in Joburg CBD. Join me on a crisis safari down Durban Street. ⛔️💦 #BelieveInJoburg #Zille4Mayor ♬ original sound - Helen Zille
CEO of Ditshego Media Tebogo Ditshego, agrees that this shows a broader shift in political campaigning.
He said that while campaigns previously used to rely on traditional advertising across radio, TV, and print media, there is now a revolution in storytelling.
“There's more of an authentic slant towards the development of their election campaigns. So as opposed to investing large sums of money in advertising, which I would say is still relevant and necessary.
“You can simply pull out your phone and tell a story about your daily experiences in the area in which you're campaigning. This can be very effective for local government as the focus is now on service delivery,” he explained.
However, Ditshego cautions that while these viral moments by the DA are powerful, they risk having issues being lost in the sauce.
This is because one may not see substantive debates on serious issues such as infrastructure development.
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This, according to Ditshego, includes development of educational facilities in townships and rural areas, such as whether there are recreational, science, and technology facilities that pupils can utilise, the crisis of youth unemployment, structural inequalities, the country's economy, and its impact on the local level.
“We need to look at more substantive issues beyond what would be more gimmicks of which,” he said.
It is for these reasons that Ditshego stresses the need for public engagements, all of which can still be done on social media.
“We should be having almost daily conversations. Whether it's going live on Instagram, live on TikTok, or recording videos every evening and talking about different issues.
“There has to be more to this than meets the eye, and I am hoping we can go further into getting substance. Even if it means unpacking the impact of those potholes even further into conversations on social media,” he added.
In the same breath, Ditshego said social media does not replace the traditional way of advertising, but it is also adding value.
This is because he still believes that direct communication, including door-to-door and posters, still has an impact.
Overall, he believes that the DA is well ahead of the curve and has managed to create visibility and relevance.
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At the same time, he said it is helping the DA brand overall and will help other DA candidates in other municipalities to do the same.
“I wouldn't say she's making it impossible for people not to vote for the DA, but she's making the DA visible. And she's perhaps attempting to drive a ubiquitous campaign, if not a highly visible campaign that's impossible to miss, which is having conversational value."