Tshwane Councillor leads tree-in-pothole protest over service failures: 'You can stand inside of them!'

CapeTalk's Lester Kiewit interviews Quentin Meyer, Ward 2 Councillor in the City of Tshwane.

Listen below:

Meyer recently led a protest in Pretoria North, where residents planted trees in potholes to highlight persistent road maintenance issues and long-standing service delivery complaints.

The unconventional demonstration quickly gained public attention, earning praise from frustrated locals who viewed it as a bold stand against municipal inaction.

According to Meyer, the potholes are so large that "you could literally stand inside of them."

However, the City of Tshwane’s Roads and Transport Section 79 Oversight Committee condemned the protest, labelling it as “vandalism” and a violation of municipal by-laws, which prohibit unauthorised planting on public roads.

Meyer says that he had reached out to the Executive Mayor and all of the MMCs well before taking action, but their continued silence left him with no other option.

"They were well-aware of the situation months before it had been done and still silent... nothing from their side."

- Quentin Meyer, Ward 2 Councillor – City of Tshwane

Since the protest, Meyer says that there's been some progress, with repairs already underway on several of the potholes.

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.