20/07/2026
THE WORK MUST BE DONE
More than a century ago, Theodore Roosevelt wrote words that still challenge us today:
"The work must be done; we cannot escape our responsibility... Above all, let us, as we value our own self-respect, face the responsibilities with proper seriousness, courage, and high resolve."
Johannesburg stands at such a moment.
Our city was once the economic engine of Africa. Today, too many of our communities face failing infrastructure, crime, corruption, decaying public spaces, unreliable services, and a growing sense that decline is inevitable.
It is not.
But recovery will not happen because we complain about it. It will happen because ordinary citizens decide that they will no longer stand on the side-lines.
The work must be done.
It will require discipline over cynicism. Decency over division. Integrity over expedience. Service over self-interest. It will require us to hold every elected representative and every public servant accountable—not by slogans, but by performance.
Roosevelt reminded us that we must demand "the highest order of integrity and ability" from those entrusted with public office. Public office is not a privilege to be enjoyed; it is a trust to be honoured. Those who call themselves public servants must remember that they are exactly that—servants of the public. Their first duty is not to themselves, nor to their political parties, but to the people they have sworn to serve.
On 4 November, Johannesburg has an opportunity to begin writing a different story.
Register. Vote. Participate.
Democracy is not a spectator sport. Every citizen who chooses not to vote leaves the future of our city in someone else's hands.
If you believe Johannesburg can be cleaner, safer, more honest, and better managed, then make your voice count.
This is our city.
This is our responsibility.
And if we are equal to the task before us, future generations will say that when Johannesburg needed its citizens most, its people answered the call.
As Roosevelt reminded us elsewhere:
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena..."
The future of Johannesburg will not be secured by those who complain from the side-lines. It will be secured by those who step into the arena—who register, who vote, who serve their communities, and who demand integrity from those elected to serve.
Register. Vote. Rebuild Johannesburg.
Be in the arena.
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