Gift Mkasi

Attendance

Present

64

Leave of absence

0

Absent without leave

1

Arrived late

0

Left early

0

"Absent without leave" means the signed minutes of a meeting held while they were on council neither list them as present nor excuse them, and no similar name appears that day, so misspellings in the minutes don't count against anyone. Each square links to the minutes.

In the chamber

From the 10 sittings transcribed so far in their term. Times are approximate, to the nearest transcript line.

Not present when called

1

Times given the floor

9

Average wait to start

9 s

Average greetings first

3 s

Apology or leave of absence (1)

• 28 May 2026 · 00:42:37Bereavement. EFF apology for a family bereavement. sitting

Not present when called (1)

• 22 Jul 2026 · 03:48:25Chair said 'Not here?' and moved to the next speaker. sitting

Warned or stopped by the chair (1)

• 30 Sept 2026 · 03:37:57Chair warned that his speaking time had run out. sitting

In their words

Every time the chair gave them the floor in a transcribed sitting (9), newest first. The words are the AI transcript of that stretch of the livestream (Argon), so they can include the chair or an interjection; the time link is the place to check.

• 30 Sept 2026 · 04:27:44Item 3 Emissions inventory reports · 2 min 11 s

  Read what they said (254 words)

  Uh thank you very much, uh Speaker, again. Um greetings to EFF um ground forces, fellow progressive uh councillors. Um before we can um uh debate this item, we just want uh we want this council to note that our people in uh Zandspruit

  Extension 16 and Extension 9 and 10, they currently do not have water. Uh they don't have water, they don't have anything.

  Councillor Mkasi, just hold on. Councillor Mkasi, just hold on.

  Hold on my time also.

  Councillor Ntombela, stop it, please. Councillor Mkasi, you can carry on.

  Yes, I was still raising a concern here about the Extension um 9 and 10 and 16. So what worries me and the community at large is that um uh this community they use uh flushing uh toilets. So if they don't have water, we don't know how are they going to use uh these toilets. We want this council to look into that and make sure that the running water is restored

  for the people of Zandspruit because we cannot rely on water tanks that are today filled, tomorrow are not filled. It's becoming a problem, it's becoming a problem, and we cannot turn the water tanks into a permanent solution while there is uh Joburg Water pipelines that were supposed to be supplying water. With uh that being said, going back to the item, Speaker, the Economic Freedom Fighters, the most radical organization that represent the marginalized people of this country, we therefore note the report. Thank you very much.

• 30 Sept 2026 · 04:10:11Item 2 Draft Clean Air Zone Policy · 4 min 3 s

  Read what they said (544 words)

  Oh, thank you very much, uh Speaker. Uh greetings to fellow progressive councillors. Um the EFF battalions are here today, uh and greetings to the incoming Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, uh who joined us online, um Dr. Tlale.

  Uh the EFF welcome the Draft Clean Air Zone Policy before council. However, support for the principle of clean air must never uh mean that council gives uh this report uh a blank check. We must be honest about what this report uh is telling us. The city itself acknowledges that Johannesburg experiences poor air quality and that approximately 48% of days are classified as poor air quality days.

  The baseline assessment further records frequent exceedances of PM2.5 and PM10 health-based guidelines, particularly during winter. The report identifies household fuel consumption, waste burning, unpaved roads, vehicle emissions, industrial activities, and dust as contributing sources. So the problem is real. But Speaker, the question is who carries the burden of solving it? We cannot develop a clean air policy that becomes another enforcement mechanism

  directed primarily at the poor communities while the structural causes of pollution remain unresolved. The report itself makes an important admission: communities experiencing high pollution are often also communities facing poverty, unemployment, inadequate housing, and limited access to basic municipal services. That is where our criticism begins. If residents burn waste because waste is not collected reliably, the city cannot simply arrive with enforcement officers and punish the residents.

  Fix the waste collection system. If households burn wood or coal because they do not have reliable and affordable energy, then the solution cannot simply be enforcement. Provide reliable electricity and affordable uh cleaner energy alternatives. If unpaved roads contribute to particulate pollution, then council must deal with the roads and dust. Build and maintain roads. If the public transport is inadequate and unreliable,

  we cannot place the entire responsibility for transport emissions on ordinary residents who have no practical alternative. Improve public transport and provide affordable alternatives. This is particularly important because the report itself concludes that a vehicle-only low emission zone will be insufficient for Johannesburg. The policy therefore correctly recognizes that pollution must be addressed across multi uh sectors. But Speaker, recognizing the problem is not enough.

  We need implementation. The report says there is no direct financial implication arising from the report, yet the annexures identify interventions requiring human resources, financial resources, equipment, systems, and monitoring. That raises a legitimate question: where is the implementation budget going to come from when

  30 seconds, Councillor.

  when the the actual intervention begins? Council must not approve uh ambitious environmental objectives today and discover tomorrow that there is no there is no money. In uh closing, uh Speaker, um as the Economic Freedom Fighters, we would like to invite the citizens, residents of the City of Johannesburg to the Tshela Thupa Rally that will be hosted in Orlando Stadium on the 31st of October.

  There will be buses across City of Johannesburg. Each and every ward uh will have a bus. Just um communicate with uh the branch uh leadership there, then we go and listen to the president and the commander-in-chief of the Economic Freedom Fighters. With that being said, um we note the report, Speaker. Thank you very much.

• 30 Sept 2026 · 03:33:54Item 1 C40 accelerators · 4 min 9 s

  Read what they said (586 words)

  Thank you very much, Speaker. Greetings to fellow councillors, greetings to the EFF ground forces present here today. The EFF approached this report from one fundamental question: What will this commitment do for the people who are suffering today? Because we have become very good on producing plans, frameworks, strategies, accelerators, and international commitments, but our people do not eat

  those strategies. Our people do not live inside policy documents. Our people need water, they need houses, they need electricity, they need roads, they need sanitation, they need affordable food, they need public transport, they need the land, which is the fundamental question for our struggle as black people, and they need dignity. This report correctly recognized that the climate crisis, inadequate housing, informal settlement expansion, and food insecurity are affecting marginalized communities.

  We therefore recognize the importance of urban planning that protects communities from floods, heat waves, and other climate risks. We recognize the importance of food security. We recognize the importance of affordable houses, but EFF will not support feel-good words without measurable implementation. The report tells us that within six years, 80% of new developments should be located close to public transport. It tells us that at least 20% of new developments should be provided

  adequate and affordable housing. It tells us that green and permeable surfaces must be incorporated into new developments. Those are important commitments. But we must ask: Where are the targets for our informal settlements? Where are the targets for Zandspruit? Where are the targets for communities that have waited for decades for proper infrastructure? Where is the implementation program that says exactly which communities will benefit,

  Speaker, we can't hear the speaker. His sound's gone.

  when they will benefit,

  We can hear the councillor. Continue, councillor.

  Oh, okay. Dankie, Speaker. You cannot speak about climate resilience while people live in settlements where heavy rainfall can destroy homes. You cannot speak about sustainable urban development while poor communities are pushed further and further away from employment opportunities. You cannot speak about inclusive planning while working-class people remain trapped on the margins of the city.

  The EFF therefore says urban transformation must mean transformation for the working class. The report also speaks about affordable houses. We welcome that, but we must ask: Affordable for whom? How many houses? Where will they be built? Who will qualify? What is the implementation timetable, and what land will be made available? The EFF position is clear: Public resources must serve the public interest. Municipal land

  must be used strategically to address housing, community facilities, economic development, and food security. We cannot have a city where well-located land is protected for wealth while poor people are pushed further and further away from economic opportunities.

  50 seconds.

  Speaker, the report speaks about food business, green jobs, food production, and security. Our question is: How many jobs? How many local producers? How many cooperatives, and how many community food gardens? How many households will benefit out of this program? Speaker, we must therefore ask: What will this program actually cost? What is the financial model? Which programs are already funded? Which department will carry the cost?

  20 seconds.

  What external funding will be accessed? What will council receive annually in terms of this program? And this program will be measured by whether young people can participate meaningfully in the economy. That is the standard against which we must evaluate

  Your time is up, Councillor Mkasi. Your time is up.

  We therefore note the report and approve.

• 26 Aug 2026 · 06:45:558 · 9 s

  Read what they said (18 words)

  Uh, thank you very much, Speaker. Uh, the Economic Freedom Fighters, the EFF, note the report. Thank you.

• 26 Aug 2026 · 06:38:227 · 4 min 5 s

  Read what they said (572 words)

  Yes. Um, thank you very much again, Speaker. The EFF rises to support item 7, but we support it with our eyes wide open because supporting a methodology does not mean surrendering our responsibility to the people. This report before council concerns the gas price determination methodology of Egoli Gas for a period of July 2026 to June, uh, 2031. The methodology incorporates CPI adjustment, bulk gas purchase costs, system losses, network costs and

  and a basic energy charge. The report also says that there is an element of cross-subsidization between large industrial users and designated residential customers, specifically to protect vulnerable households from tariff shocks. The EFF therefore says protect the poor, protect consumers and make affordability non-negotiable. Um, Speaker, we cannot debate the price of gas in this council while people in Zandspruit are struggling to access something far

  more fundamentally, uh, just water. What is the meaning of sophisticated five years, uh, pricing methodology when a child in Zandspruit cannot open a tap and receive reliable running water? What is the meaning of, uh, talking about cost reflectivity when working-class families are forced to carry containers looking for water? And what message are we sending to residents when council can spend amount of, uh, time discussing methodologies, formulas and tariffs, but

  communities continue to experience water shortages and failing, uh, infrastructure? The EFF 2026 manifesto is absolutely clear: local government must guarantee reliable access to basic services, because a basic, because service delivery is a development obligation and matter of human dignity. The manifesto specifically commits EFF municipalities to ensure that every household has access to clean, safe and reliable running water, while fixing reported water leaks within

  a day and establishing dedicated plumbing teams in high leakage areas. That is the standard we must bring in this council. People of Johannesburg must not become a permanent waiting room for basic services. The manifesto further commits to rebuild municipal internal capacity, employing engineers, plumbers, technicians and artisans, creating permanent municipality teams responsible for water, sanitation and infrastructure. It calls for repair, expansion and maintenance of pipe, reservoir, treatment plants

  and priority informal settlements and historically underserviced communities. So when we support item 7, we demand the same seriousness when it comes to water. Speaker, there is another issue that is, that this report itself raises. The report says the city's role is now limited to confirming whether the methodology has been correctly applied and not, and noting tariffs for transparency, affordability and non-discrimination, because NERSA is responsible for the regulatory approval of gas pricing methodologies. Yet the recommendation before council

  50 seconds.

  says that council should approve the methodology. We therefore ask, what exactly is council approving if the report tells us that the determination of the methodology falls within the mandate of NERSA? We cannot have when public resources and the affordability of working-class households are involved. The EFF support an approach that protects vulnerable consumers, but protection cannot stop at the gas meter. It must extend to water tap, the sanitation system, electricity connection and every other basic

  municipality. Therefore, our support for this item comes with a clear message:

  20 seconds.

  do not, uh, do not tell Zandspruit that there is no money for water while there's always money for consultants, contractors and endless administrative processes. Let us, um, approve what is legally appropriate, protect the vulnerability consumers, demand transparency from Egoli Gas. Um, Johannesburg that

• 26 Aug 2026 · 06:18:596 · 3 min 29 s

  Read what they said (434 words)

  Thank you very much, Speaker. All protocols observed. The EFF supports Item 6 because we cannot reject resources that strengthen the capacity of this city to deliver sustainability. The report proposes the acceptance of a 3 million US dollar Global Environmental Facility grant, approximately 54 million, for Sustainable Cities Planning and Decarbonisation Integrated Program.

  The city is further committing approximately 6.5 million US dollars in co-financing over the medium-term period. But, Speaker, let us be clear: supporting this item does not mean giving the administration a blank cheque. The report speaks about sustainable cities, resilient infrastructure, energy efficiency, solar PV, and climate resilience. Fine.

  But sustainability cannot be measured only by how many solar panels we install on municipal buildings. A city is not sustainable when people in Zandspruit wake up without water. A municipality cannot speak proudly about becoming a climate-resilient city while working-class communities are forced to queue for water, buy water, borrow water, and live with unreliable supply. The EFF 2026 local government manifesto says that municipalities must guarantee universal,

  reliable, and affordable access to basic services, and that qualifying poor households must receive free basic water. It further commits EFF municipalities to repairing, expanding, and maintaining water infrastructure, including pipes, reservoirs, and treatment plants, while eliminating water losses caused by leaks and poor maintenance. That is exactly where Zandspruit must enter this discussion. Because when we look at this report, we see detailed commitments

  around rooftop solar, energy efficiency, metering, and feasibility studies, but we do not see a dedicated intervention in this item for the water crisis confronting communities such as Zandspruit. Therefore, our support must come with a political demand. The city must not use sustainability funding as an excuse to postpone basic service delivery. We demand that the administration identify the water infrastructure failures in Johannesburg, quantify the backlog, identify the funding required,

  provide a timetable for intervention, and report back to council on actual progress.

  Vanhu va ka hina a va na mati, ende mati i vutomi. Handle ka mati, ku hava vutomi.

  The EFF manifesto is very clear: rebuild internal municipal capacity by employing engineers, plumbers, technicians, artisans, and other skilled professionals, and establish permanent municipal teams responsible for roads, water, and sanitation. That is the solution we need. We do not need another endless cycle of consultants producing reports while people of Transit Camp

  ba hloka metsi.

  We need pipes repaired, reservoirs upgraded, pressure stabilized, leaks fixed, and water delivered to people of Scrapyard and Phumlani.

  Botshelo bo ko Konda batho ba sena metsi.

  The manifesto even commits EFF municipalities to fixing water leaks

• 25 Jun 2026 · 02:42:0984 · 4 min 7 s

  Read what they said (585 words)

  Uh thank you very much, uh Speaker. The EFF approach this item from a standpoint of working class, the unemployed, waste pickers, communities living next to landfill sites, the generation that will inherit the environmental consequences of today's decisions. The report asks Council to approve the transfer of 50 million to Development Bank of South Africa for completion of biogas pilot project. The stated objective is uh to reduce waste going to landfill,

  generate renewable energy and create jobs. These are objectives that the EFF has consistently championed because our people need jobs, our people need electricity and our people need sustainable development. But Speaker, we must ask a fundamental question. Why are we here in 2026 discussing a project that started more than a decade ago? The city was invited in 2014 to participate in this program. The grant was approved in 2016,

  millions were committed, the city paid its contribution, yet today we are told that contractor appointment delays, non-responsive tenders and cost escalation have created a budget shortfall requiring another 50 million from the people of Johannesburg. The EFF refuses to normalize this culture of endless delays. Every delay in government project is not merely an administration inconvenience. It is an unemployment delay, it is a service delivery delay, it is an economic development

  delay. While officials were processing paperwork and tenders were collapsing, thousands of young people in Johannesburg remained unemployed. While officials debate procurement processes, landfills continue to fill up. While contractors failed to materialize, communities continued living with environmental hazard. That is why the EFF says real crisis confronting Johannesburg is not shortage of ideas, the real crisis is a shortage of political will,

  accountability and the sense of urgency. The 2024 EFF manifesto identifies jobs, infrastructure development, energy security and environmental sustainability as a central pillar of economic transformation. The EFF believes that waste must not simply be dumped. Waste must become an economic resource, waste must become energy, waste must become employment, waste must become an instrument for industrialization. The proposed biogas facility has the potential to process organic

  waste, reduce landfill pressure and contribute to renewable energy generation. The project hopes a 50-ton per day biogas plant, separation at source programs and the city-wide biodegradable waste strategy. They are objectives that advance the interest of the people. However, Speaker, the EFF issue a warning. We will not support the transfer of public money as a blank check. We demand strict reporting to Council, we demand full transparency on procurement,

  we demand local economy participation, we demand that township business, cooperatives and workers benefit from this project. We demand measurable job creation targets. We demand consequences for delays that have already cost the city millions. The EFF will never support a situation where public money enriches consultants while communities remain poor. The people of Johannesburg are tired of pilot projects that never become reality. They are tired of feasibility studies that never create jobs.

  They are tired of strategies that never change their material conditions on the ground. The EFF therefore support this item because renewable energy, environmental sustainability and job creations are necessary for the future of this city.

  20 seconds left.

  Our support comes with the demand that every cent transferred must produce visible infrastructure, real jobs, energy generation and real benefits for the people of Johannesburg. The era of endless planning must come to an end, the era of implementation must begin. The era of environmental justice and economic freedom for our people must

• 24 Jun 2026 · 06:11:5874 · 3 min 52 s

  Read what they said (566 words)

  Thank you very much, Speaker. All protocols observed. The question before us today is not simply whether we approve the Performance Improvement Action Plan. The real question is how did we arrive at a situation where the City of Johannesburg must develop a turnaround strategy for something as basic as collecting rubbish from our communities? Because behind every uncollected refuse bag lies a political failure. Behind every illegal dumping site lies a failed developmental state. Behind every landfill reaching crisis point lies years of neglect, underinvestment, and poor planning.

  This report itself admits that Pikitup suffers from inadequate capacity, insufficient investment, weak systems, critical vacancies, and governance challenges. It admits that customer satisfaction sits at only 61%. It admits that there has been historical underinvestment in solid waste management. It admits that there are serious weaknesses in procurement systems and operational capacity. Those are not EFF findings. Those are the admissions contained in this report before us. Speaker, when the people of Zandspruit wake up

  to mountains of waste next to their homes, they do not care about PowerPoint presentations. When the people of Diepsloot walk past illegal dumping sites every day, they do not care about fancy strategic frameworks. When children in informal settlements play next to rotting waste breeding rats, flies, and disease, they are not asking for another consultant report. They are demanding dignity. They are demanding service delivery. They are demanding a municipality that works. The EFF has always maintained that municipalities collapse when they surrender their responsibilities to tenderpreneurs.

  Our 2021 local government election manifesto correctly identified the over-reliance on outsourcing and tenders as one of the major causes of municipal collapse. The EFF has consistently advocated for building state capacity, ending the dependence on private contractors for core municipal functions. That is why we welcome aspects of this plan that seek to strengthen internal capacity, professionalize project management, improve accountability, fill critical vacancies, and invest in infrastructure.

  They are principles that align with the EFF's vision of a capable developmental municipality. However, we must warn this administration: a turnaround plan without implementation is just another document gathering dust on the municipal shelves. A turnaround plan without insourcing is meaningless. A turnaround plan without workers is meaningless. A turnaround plan without investment in townships and informal settlements, it is meaningless. A turnaround plan without consequences for corruption is meaningless.

  The EFF therefore supports this item not because we are satisfied with the state of Pikitup, but because our people cannot wait any longer for action. We support it because the report contains commitments to increase infrastructure investment, expand waste management facilities, improve landfill compliance, strengthen service coverage, and build operational capacity. But our support comes with a revolutionary warning: we will not allow this plan to become another official exercise while our people continue living among

  50 seconds.

  filth. We will demand quarterly accountability, we will demand the filling of critical vacancies, we will demand the insourcing of strategic functions, we will demand investment in informal settlements and historically neglected communities, we will demand that every cent allocated to waste management reaches the ground and benefits our people. For those reasons, while exposing the failures that made this turnaround necessary, the EFF supports the approval of this item and commits ourselves to militant oversight to ensure that it serves the people and not consultants or tenderpreneurs and officials. I thank you.

• 24 Jun 2026 · 05:57:4473 · 4 min 10 s

  Read what they said (577 words)

  Thank you very much, Speaker. All protocols observed. The EFF rise in support of this item, but we do so with the interest of the working class and the poor firmly in our minds. Before we speak about financial models, business plans, investment frameworks, and performance improvement action plans, let us speak about the people of Johannesburg. Let us speak about the people of Zandspruit.

  Every day, thousands of residents in Zandspruit wake up in informal settlements where access to basic services remains inadequate. They wake up to overflowing sanitation facilities, unreliable electricity supply, poor road infrastructure, and difficult living conditions. Many families continue to live in overcrowded shacks, vulnerable to fires, floods, and disease. Many young people walk the streets searching for employment opportunities that remain out of reach.

  The painful reality is that while Johannesburg is regarded as the economic capital of South Africa, many of its people continue to live in conditions that resemble poverty imposed by colonialism and apartheid. The people of Zandspruit do not experience the economy through statistics. They experience it through darkness when electricity is unavailable. They experience it through food that spoils because there is no reliable power supply. They experience it through children who cannot study at night.

  They experience it through small businesses that cannot operate because of electricity interruptions. They express it through dangerous illegal connections that have become a consequence of decades of exclusion and underdevelopment. Speaker, the fundamental question before us is whether City Power can become a stronger institution capable of serving the people of Johannesburg. The report before Council speaks about building a financially sustainable, accountable, and performance-driven utility.

  Those objectives are important because a collapsing utility cannot serve the people. The EFF has always maintained that electricity is not a luxury. Electricity is a basic necessity. Electricity is a tool for economic liberation. Electricity is a tool for industrialization. Electricity is a tool for education. Electricity is a tool for safety and human dignity. A child in Zandspruit deserves the same access to electricity as a child in Sandton.

  A small business in Diepsloot deserves the same reliable power supply of electricity as a business in Rosebank. A worker in Alexandra deserves the same quality of municipal services as those that are enjoyed in wealthy suburbs. This is why the struggle for electricity is not merely a technical matter, but it is a political matter. It is a class matter. It is a matter of social justice. The EFF rejects any approach that treats City Power as nothing more than a balance sheet.

  City Power exists to serve the people. Its success cannot be measured only by financial performance. Its success must be measured by whether the lives of ordinary residents improve. Can City Power reduce outages? Can City Power replace aging infrastructure?

  50 seconds.

  Can City Power strengthen substations? Those are the questions that matter to our people. Speaker, the left has always understood that a capable developmental state is necessary to defeat poverty, inequality, and underdevelopment. We cannot build prosperous communities with collapsing public institutions. However, we place on record that implementation of those reforms must prioritize working-class communities, informal settlements, township economy, and the people in the center.

  Speaker, as the EFF, we support the recommendation before Council and approve the City Power Trading Reform Strategy for financial year 2026 to 2027, together with the financial model, business investment plan, and the Performance Improvement Action Plan Version 2.

Spoke on

• 30 Sept 2026 · 03:30:48Item 1: C40 / UN-Habitat Urban Planning Accelerator and Thriving Food Systems Accelerator
• 30 Sept 2026 · 04:02:35Item 2: Draft Clean Air Zone Policy - councillor debate
• 30 Sept 2026 · 04:27:20Item 3: Emissions inventory, dispersion modelling and source apportionment reports
• 26 Aug 2026 · 06:18:45Item 6: EFF position and demands on water
• 26 Aug 2026 · 06:36:11Item 7: Egoli Gas price determination methodology 2026-2031
• 26 Aug 2026 · 06:44:50Item 8: Egoli Gas 2026/27 tariffs
• 25 Jun 2026 · 02:34:13Item 84: Biogas pilot project budget shortfall transfer to DBSA
• 24 Jun 2026 · 05:56:19Item 73: City Power Trading Reform Strategy 2026-27 (PIAP V2)
• 24 Jun 2026 · 06:07:23Item 74: Pikitup Performance Improvement Action Plan