Kunene Slams Zille Over ‘Pothole Swim’ Stunt In Joburg: “Pig Rolling In Muddy Waters”

Kenny Kunene has hit back at Helen Zille following her viral video showing her swimming in what she described as a pothole in northern Johannesburg.

The Patriotic Alliance (PA) deputy president and MMC for Roads and Transport in the City of Johannesburg dismissed the claim, insisting the water-filled hole was not a pothole but part of ongoing municipal work.

According to Kunene, the site was a trench opened by Johannesburg Water during repairs to a burst pipe, which led to water accumulating in the area.

‘Not a Pothole’: Joburg Water Repairs Explained

Kunene clarified that his department only steps in once utility work has been completed.

“The time of elections makes politicians desperate and you would have seen that with Gogo Zille, who does not understand how Johannesburg works. She went to do a very unhygienic thing, swimming in a hole that she called a pothole.

“It’s not a pothole, it’s a reinstatement,” he said. “But because Helen Zille came to Johannesburg targeting Kenny Kunene and JRA, any hole, even though she does not know what it is about, she already thinks that it is a pothole,” he said.

He explained that road reinstatements are carried out after infrastructure repairs are finalised, noting that multiple entities — including Johannesburg Water and other municipal departments — are involved in such processes.

Kenny Kunene’s Harsh Words and Mayor’s Safety Concerns

Kunene did not hold back in his criticism, accusing Zille of embarrassing herself with the stunt.

“We are reinstating the infrastructure that was damaged by Joburg Water after Joburg Water fixed a problem. So, it’s unfortunate that an old lady like that can behave like a frog swimming in dirty water, behave like a pig rolling in muddy waters. Unfortunately I cannot swim with pigs in the mud.

“I am very clean, but I get my hands dirty in the right way, not in the way to be sensational,” he said.

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He added that significant progress had been made under his leadership, citing more than a thousand reinstatement projects completed, while also claiming that Johannesburg Water owes the Johannesburg Roads Agency substantial funds.

Kunene had this message for Zille: “Gogo Zille, please research first before you embarrass yourself the way you did.”

Meanwhile, Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero also weighed in, warning that such actions could set a dangerous example.

“You are encouraging children in the townships to swim when there is work that is being done in the best pipes and we have seen in the past where children die of swimming in a manhole or where a pipe burst has been repaired,” he told the media.