Economist.com Cities Guide: Johannesburg Briefing - December 2005

News this month

Backtrack

November brought more obstacles for the Gautrain, the much-delayed high-speed rail link between Johannesburg and Pretoria, South Africa's capital. In October it was announced that the train's estimated cost had ballooned to 20 billion rand ($3 billion), three times its original budget. Nevertheless, construction of the project was expected to start in January 2006, in order to open in time for the 2010 football World Cup, which South Africa is hosting. Instead, the parliamentary transport committee, which reviewed the project this month, called for the Gautrain to be scrapped or delayed. Local authorities maintain it will go ahead, and a cabinet decision is expected in December.

Concerns over the project's increasing costs and doubts about the expected number of passengers fuelled the parliamentary committee's condemnation. Critics also argue that the project will benefit only a minority of affluent passengers, while the bulk of Johannesburg's creaky public transport system is in serious need of upgrading. Commuter anger appears to be growing: on November 9th, 28 train coaches were set on fire in Soweto, a large black township, in apparent protest at constant delays. Metrorail, the commuter train operator, has lost 45 coaches to similar incidents since September.

Local difficulties

The countdown to South Africa's local elections has officially started, with the government announcing on November 17th that new councillors would be elected on March 1st 2006. Although polling day is some way off, voters are eyeing the election eagerly after the disappointing performance of many authorities around the country, which led to riots earlier this year. Infighting within the ruling African National Congress (ANC) is complicating the process of selecting candidates. Amos Masondo, Johannesburg's mayor, is among many local officials struggling to secure another nomination.

The election is putting pressure on the government to solve the problem of municipalities that cross provincial boundaries. In November, South Africa's constitution was amended to allow the government to correct anomalies. But the change has ruffled voters who feel they are being shuffled from an effective local authority to a poorly performing one. In early November, 6,000 residents of the township of Khutsong, south-west of Johannesburg and part of Merafong municipality (which straddles North West and Gauteng provinces), protested violently against plans to transfer them from Gauteng to the poorer province of North West.

Son also rises

There was relief for Amos Masondo, the mayor of Johannesburg, in November. For years, Mr Masondo has been plagued by Graham Sifiso Masondo, a conman with a convenient last name who has made a profession out of posing as the mayor's son. But on November 9th, Mr Sifiso Masondo gave himself up to the police after seven years on the run.

Mr Sifiso Masondo is accused of defrauding scores of people by luring them into dodgy property deals—often selling the same piece of land several times—while not only pretending to be the mayor's offspring, but also giving the impression that he himself was employed by the city government. He is no stranger to the justice system, with six criminal convictions between 1978 and 1987, and other cases now pending.

Cup runneth over

South Africa’s many rugby fans were bitterly disappointed on November 17th, when the country lost its bid to host the Rugby World Cup tournament in 2011. South Africa was seen as the favourite, thanks to its excellent rugby infrastructure and a powerful bid led by Francois Pienaar, who captained the Springboks, the national rugby team, when South Africa won the cup final in 1995. The country also benefits from being in the same time zone as Europe, which is convenient for television coverage. But the International Rugby Board (IRB), meeting in Dublin, plumped instead for New Zealand, whose All Blacks team are the Springboks' most serious rivals.

The infighting that has wracked the South African Rugby Union over the past few months probably influenced the IRB's decision, as did the overshadowing power of the football World Cup, which South Africa is hosting in 2010. It was the second bit of bad news for local sports fans in a few days, following an announcement that Johannesburg's bid to host the eighth International Gay Games, one of the world's largest sporting events, had also failed.

Going round in cycles

Sports-mad Johannesburg saw a record attendance for its largest annual sports event on November 20th, when the Pick ’n Pay 94.7 Cycle Challenge attracted 28,000 participants to the city's streets. With many big roads closed to traffic for the day, the race brought Johannesburg to a standstill. According to organisers, the timed cycling race is the second largest such event in the world (its sibling, the Pick 'n Pay Cape Argus Cycle Tour in Cape Town, is the largest).
Launched in 1997 with about 5,500 cyclists, the 94.7km race through Johannesburg is not for the faint-hearted. The event is sponsored by the Pick ’n Pay supermarket chain and 94.7 Highveld Stereo, a popular local radio station, and endorsed by local authorities. Professionals and amateurs alike rub shoulders for the love of the sport rather than money: prizes range from just 330 rand to 16,500 rand.

Catch if you can

December 2005

Johnny Clegg

December 8th-11th & 14th-18th 2005

Johnny Clegg, known as the “White Zulu”, is a veteran of South Africa's music scene. With his bands Juluka and Savuka, he achieved international fame in the 1980s, at the height of the struggle against apartheid. The formation of Juluka—which combined white and black musicians, as well as Zulu and English lyrics—flew in the face of cultural segregation laws.

Fascinated by Zulu culture since his youth, Mr Clegg's trademark style fuses western melodies with Zulu musical structures. His current show weaves music and dance with a history of his career and reflections on Zulu culture. It has been a huge success, selling out three seasons in a row.

Theatre Of Marcellus at Emperor’s Palace, 64 Jones Rd, Kempton Park, Johannesburg. Tel: +27 (0)11 928-1213 or visit Computicket. See also Emperor's Palace and Johnny Clegg's official site.

More from the Johannesburg cultural calendar