“How?”: SA TikToker Reacts After SA Takes 3 Spots in Top 5 Least Safe Cities List, Mzansi Reacts

• A TikToker named Garfield reacted to a global ranking that placed three South African cities in the top 5 least safe in the world
• Pietermaritzburg ranked first, Pretoria second, and Johannesburg fourth on the VisaGuide World list
• South Africans in the comments had a lot to say about their country's dominance on the list

A South African TikToker named Garfield posted a video on 19 August 2026 reacting to a global safety ranking that placed three South African cities among the world's five least safe. The list, compiled by VisaGuide World and sourced from Numbeo crime data, placed Pietermaritzburg first, Pretoria second, and Johannesburg fourth. Caracas, Venezuela, and Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, took the third and fifth spots respectively.

Rather than expressing alarm, Garfield leaned into dark humour. He cheered South Africa's "commitment to the game" and jokingly called out Johannesburg for slipping to fourth place.

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Video of South African woman triggers laughter with attempt to say 888 in Afrikaans cracks up Mzansi

"Come on Johannesburg, we need to get those numbers up. We can't let Venezuela beat us."

View the TikTok video below:

Mzansi reacts to the ranking

The video drew hundreds of comments on the page, with South Africans responding in equal parts humour and disbelief.

@Daniel Black wrote:

"Cape Town fell off 😭🥀"

@RussianRaccoon noted:

"Dawg and 2 of them are our capitals"

@Batman said:

"Batman left South Africa and moved to Gotham to feel safer 😭"

@madddddddyyyyyyyyy added:

"So you telling me Mexico is safer than PMB Brazil is safer than PMB the cape flats are safer than PMB 😭😭 how the hell am I not dead 😭"

@Andiswa Hadebe questioned:

"How is Pietermaritzburg dangerous?? Am I missing something??"

@Sean_elation🇿🇦 joked:

"Where's Oblock 😭 I swear America doesn't submit their homework"

@Saltea 🍉 pointed out:

"If you look at top ten, we're there five times 😭😭"

More Briefly News stories on rankings

• Pepkor plans to launch PlusB Bank in April 2027, targeting 1.8 million customers and using its extensive store network to challenge Capitec’s dominance in South Africa’s banking sector.
• Germiston teen Isabella Kharaka made South Africa proud by finishing second at the 2026 Blackpool Freestyle World Dance Championships.
• A Nigerian mother was surprised to discover that her child’s South African school report included class rankings, prompting her to question the practice and sparking reactions online.

Source: Briefly News