Gareth Cliff Reacts to the List of City of Johannesburg’s Highest-Earning Executives

• On Monday, 24 November 2025, a social media user reshared a list of the City of Johannesburg's top-paid executives, compiled by Daily Maverick
• Popular South African media personality Gareth Cliff weighed in on the list with a metaphor and a brutal nickname
• Social media reactions were divided, with some agreeing with Cliff's assessment

Renowned broadcaster Gareth Cliff has reacted to a list of the City of Johannesburg’s highest-earning executives.

Having previously weighed in on the Democratic Alliance (DA) nominating its former leader, Helen Zille, as its candidate for mayor of Johannesburg ahead of next year’s local government elections, Gareth Cliff shared his thoughts on the list of the City of Johannesburg’s highest-earning executives.

Gareth Cliff reacts to City of Johannesburg's list of top-earning executives

On Monday, 24 November 2025, social media user @GodTRYX reshared a list of Johannesburg’s highest-earning executives for 2025/26, compiled by Daily Maverick. In the caption, the social media user lamented that Johannesburg is being run by individuals who don’t care about the city or the people living in it. The post was captioned:

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“Quite disturbing! Johannesburg is entrusted to rich cadres with no concern for the city or its residents.”

See the list of the City of Johannesburg’s highest-earning executives below:

As South Africans reacted to the list of the highest earners in the City of Johannesburg, Gareth Cliff joined the conversation and shared his two cents.

Cliff, who previously weighed in after the Special Investigative Unit (SIU) raided Hangwani Maumela with a brutal nickname for tenderpreneurs, did not spare the City of Johannesburg’s highest earners. He lamented how South Africa has become a place where executives appear to exploit resources meant for the public. The post was captioned:

“This country is a gigantic trough for greedy pigs.”

See the post below:

SA reacts after Gareth Cliff shares his thoughts on City of Joburg's top earners

In the comments, some assumed Gareth Cliff had bashed the list of the highest earners in the City of Joburg because of their race and provided evidence that it wasn’t an issue of race. Others lamented the state of affairs in South Africa and predicted that things would only get worse. Former Olympian Roland Schoeman also weighed in with a question after Cliff's reaction.

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Here are some of the comments:

@Craw1ers claimed:

“And the G20 investments have ensured that it carries on unabated.”

@ChicagoBoy2023 joked:

“Behold the awesome power of just being able to call people ‘racist’.”

@oculusoculus argued:

"This kind of salary is so unfathomable to me. That being said, I just found out that my CEO earns $7 million per year. I would have to work for 260 years to earn what he earns in 1 year. The gap between the haves & have-nots is not a gap, it's an abyss."

@Rolandschoeman asked:

"Is anyone surprised anymore?"

@nhlayisi_M challenged:

"Show us the list of those carrying the City of Cape Town. I'll wait."

Gareth Cliff slams state of Pretoria and suggests new name

Meanwhile, Briefly News reported that Gareth Cliff criticised the state of Pretoria and proposed a new name for the city, sparking mixed reactions.

Cliff was reacting to a TikTok video showing a drive through Pretoria in Marabastad via Boom Street. Several netizens slammed Gareth Cliff for making harsh comments without the proper context of the video.

Proofreading by Kelly Lippke, copy editor at Briefly.co.za.

Source: Briefly News