There is a lie at the heart of our Johannesburg. We all know it well – Johannesburg is a "World Class African City." One wishes the slogan was true. But as many residents know, the city, particularly when I took office in 2016, was more akin to a world-class slum. The inner-city, formerly the heartbeat Johannesburg, was mired in crime and grim – a hellscape for many residents. It is not an exaggeration to say that in 2016, the city spiralled into deep decline despite the ANC’s spin-doctoring, costing over R300 million. At the time, Johannesburg faced an infrastructure backlog estimated at R170 billion and a housing backlog of over 300 000 units.