This week on Moneyweb@Midday we examined Joburg’s financial crisis and Treasury’s concerns, the deployment of soldiers during anti-immigrant protests and the case for a voluntary R20k living wage.

Jeremy Maggs. Image: Moneyweb

Johannesburg’s financial distress, the army’s domestic role and the widening gap between wages and the cost of dignity dominated Moneyweb@Midday this week.

Four interviews exposed a country stabilising failing systems while asking whether assurances, emergency deployments and ambitious pay benchmarks can survive economic reality.

City of Johannesburg (CoJ) chief financial officer Tebogo Moraka defended the metro’s recovery plan despite cash coverage of five days and a debtors’ book nearing R74 billion.

He acknowledged that debt is unlikely to be fully recovered and said targeted write-offs are under way. A system modelled on South African Revenue Service processes will distinguish customers who can pay from those who cannot.

Moraka said collections improved to 96% in March and remained above 90% in May and June. But residents are unlikely to accept ratios as proof of recovery while potholes, outages, billing failures, and water interruptions continue.

He said development finance agreements, infrastructure funding and public-private partnerships should produce improvements, with the city’s service delivery war room expected to show results within weeks or months.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

That optimism was tested by Chris Hattingh, executive director of the Centre for Risk Analysis. Hattingh said National Treasury’s finding that Johannesburg’s budget is funded offers breathing space, not a clean bill of health.

The assessment covers projected revenue and expenditure for the year but does not erase unpaid obligations to Eskom and Rand Water, weak cash flow or the R23 billion backlog in irregular and wasteful expenditure.

Hattingh warned that rising debt and interest costs reduce money available for infrastructure and basic services. He said Treasury was right to freeze equitable share payments as a pressure measure, but Johannesburg’s response will determine whether stronger intervention follows. Because the metro contributes about 15% of national GDP, prolonged decline would damage investor confidence and the wider economy.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

Defence analyst Dean Wingrin said the deployment of more than 3 400 soldiers to support police during anti-immigrant marches points to a policing capacity problem.

While he regarded contingency planning as prudent after the July 2021 unrest, he warned that soldiers are trained for combat, not civilian crowd control. They should remain in the background and be used only when police cannot contain a crisis.

Wingrin also raised the danger of scope creep and the symbolism of troops confronting protesters. The estimated R54 million deployment is unfunded spending for an already underfunded defence force.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

Living Wage South Africa Network representative Dr Mark Bussin said the proposed R20 000 monthly take-home living wage is voluntary and aspirational.

Based on interviews with more than 2 000 people, it reflects what workers need for dignity, savings, and emergencies. He warned that making it compulsory would be catastrophic but urged employers to model a gradual move towards it where affordable.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.