The ANC demands that the DA remove its billboard.
- The ANC demands that the DA remove a billboard featuring Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, claiming it is unauthorised, demeaning, and violates the Electoral Act.
- The ANC has threatened legal action if the billboard and related content are not removed within 12 hours.
- The DA refuses to comply with the demand.
The ANC is demanding the removal of a massive DA electioneering billboard depicting Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi in a shower, with the words: “The ANC showers in hotels. You have no water. Vote DA to put water in your taps.”
The ANC has roped in its lawyers, who have threatened urgent court action if the billboard, as well as related social media and website posts, are not removed within 12 hours of receipt of their letter.
The DA unveiled the billboard this week after Lesufi said at a press conference a few weeks ago that he was also inconvenienced by water outages in Gauteng and had to shower at a “certain hotel”.
Lesufi has since apologised.
According to the ANC’s attorneys, the billboard is in contravention of the Electoral Act (No.73 of 1998) and the Electoral Code of Conduct.
Mongezi Ntanga, the attorney handling the matter on behalf of the ANC, said the party believed the billboard had been unveiled to tarnish the ANC’s image.
💧 Gauteng residents deserve water 24/7! Not Panyaza @Lesufi and his hotel showers.
Without water:
📉 Businesses close
❌ Jobs are lost
🏫 Schools and clinics can’t function
😷 Communities face health risksWater income must ONLY fix broken infrastructure and not fund crooks. pic.twitter.com/qcWCImOEJG
— Democratic Alliance (@Our_DA) March 3, 2026
“The foregoing billboard contains the image of the premier of Gauteng province under the shower and laughing; this is clearly an AI-generated image that has not been authorised by the Gauteng premier.
“It is an unauthorised and demeaning use of the image of the Gauteng premier that has been digitally manipulated to create impression that he has cooperated with the Democratic Alliance to assist them to satirise his own political party at the expense of the people of South Africa who are struggling to access water, whilst the premier of Gauteng province has not given consent for use of his image by the Democratic Alliance,” Ntanga wrote.
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He said the billboard’s message to voters is that the ANC does not care about their rights, particularly the right to water and that his client is insensitive to the water challenges facing the nation.
“The billboard posted by the DA contains misleading, false information and images intended to influence the voters and influence the election results.
“Our client has therefore instructed us to urgently demand the removal of the billboard, posting of content similar [to] the billboard, online publications, social media, your website and/or any other similar publication, be it on print or visual media within 12 hours from this letter,” Ntanga wrote.
He added that should the demand not be complied with, the ANC would approach the court urgently for appropriate relief, including costs.
The DA said it refused to comply with the ANC’s demand to remove the billboard.
