ANC Defends Approach to Hijacked Buildings, Slams Mashaba's Claims of Criminal Deals

• The African National Congress (ANC) has slammed ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba over his criticism regarding the hijacked buildings
• The party rejected Mashaba’s suggestion that the current administration is engaging with criminals
• The ANC said resolving the problem of hijacked buildings requires a balanced approach

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

JOHANNESBURG - The ANC in Johannesburg has taken aim at ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba over his criticism of how the city is dealing with hijacked buildings in the inner city.

Current administration engaging with criminals

According to The South African, the party rejected Mashaba’s suggestion that the current administration is engaging with criminals. The ANC described his remarks as misleading and driven by political point-scoring. Mashaba was reacting to comments by Public Safety MMC Mgcini Tshwaku, who indicated that the city intends to engage occupants of hijacked buildings to determine who can afford rent, rather than carrying out immediate evictions.

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ANC Johannesburg spokesperson Mantombi Nkosi said the issue should not be viewed purely as a policing matter, but also as a housing and urban renewal challenge. She argued that reducing the problem to law enforcement ignores the broader social realities facing inner-city residents.

Problem of hijacked buildings

Nkosi also questioned Mashaba’s record as former executive mayor, saying he failed to address the inner-city crisis during his time in office. She claimed that much of the decay the city is now trying to reverse stems from decisions made under his leadership. The ANC said resolving the problem of hijacked buildings requires a balanced approach that combines law enforcement with housing interventions and long-term urban development, rather than what it described as simplistic political rhetoric.

In a separate report, Briefly News stated that the City of Johannesburg has announced plans to open criminal cases against people who admitted to renting out shacks at the illegally occupied Ginger Park informal settlement in Paulshof. Human Settlements MMC Mlungisi Mabaso said the city is intensifying efforts to deal with unlawful land occupations by going after individuals who financially benefit from them.

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Tshwane Mayor weighs in as tensions rise over Ginger Park Settlement evictions

2 More stories about hijacked buildings

The City of Johannesburg is planning on raiding dilapidated buildings as it continues its drive to clamp down on hijacked buildings. The MMC for Community Safety, Dr Mgcini Tshwaku, was part of a raid that took place on 23 December 2025. In one of the videos SABC News posted on social media, Tshwaku was in a building which had a pile of cattle heads, used to prepare the popular cow head meat, otherwise known as inyama yenhloko. Tshwaku berated the man, reportedly selling the heads, and said that he would cause people to fall ill.

The City's MMC for Transport, Kenny Kunene, warned of the war with hijacked building cartels following Warras' murder. He said that the city is at war with illegally-occupied building cartels. He said South Africans, and not only undocumented foreigners, but also occupied the hijacked buildings and said that he believed that Warras was assassinated.

Source: Briefly News