Local government is meant to be the heartbeat of democracy. But as cities crumble, services collapse, and trust erodes, South Africans are asking: can our municipalities still be saved? In this episode of Democracy Unplugged, host Phumi Mashigo leads an honest discussion with a panel of political leaders tackling the state of local governance ahead of the 2026 municipal elections. From collapsing infrastructure to coalition chaos as well as lessons from the GNU, this episode asks what real local leadership should look like in 2026 and beyond. The Burning Platform

What does it really take to root out corruption in South Africa?

Stand-in host Xavier Bapoo speaks to former South African Police Service

(SAPS) Anti-Corruption Unit head Stefan Grobler and specialist

investigator Mike Bolhuis about the deep-seated culture of corruption

exposed by the Madlanga Commission. This conversation lays bare the

forces eroding accountability, looking at political interference, the

dismantling of anti-corruption structures to the risks faced by

investigators on the front lines, exploring what it will take to rebuild

integrity and justice in South Africa’s institutions, and more. The Burning Platform

What does South Africa’s G20 presidency mean for the country’s future?

In this episode of LevelUp, Phumi speaks with Ercilia Mata Ubisse, Regional Head for the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) and a member of the Startup20 Foundations & Alliances Taskforce, to unpack how small business, collaboration, and policy can reshape global development from an African lens. The Burning Platform

How does a values-based politics survive in a system built on power and pragmatism? And what drives a leader who still speaks of conviction in an age of calculation? In the noise of South Africa’s political landscape in flux, African Transformation Movement’s parliamentary leader Vuyo Zungula stands out for being both familiar and unexpected: a young leader who speaks the language of faith, morality, and transformation. In this episode, he speaks to Phumi Mashigo about making his way through the dynamics of politics: the old liberation parties are grappling with legitimacy, new alliances are reshaping the centre, and voters are searching for voices that sound like conviction - not convenience. The Burning Platform

Is local government failing the people? Part two of our discussion on local government - Phumi Mashigo discusses this with Sabelo Skiti, Sunday Times Investigative Journalist, Bongekile Macupe, News24 Deputy Politics Editor, and Mayihlome Tshwete, former government spokesperson and political commentator. What do voters in Gauteng really want to see and hear going into the local government campaign season? And was that councillors roll call at FNB a good idea or not? This is a fascinating conversation on politics, power and what’s next for South Africa. The Burning Platform

South Africa is running out of time. Load shedding, unemployment, corruption, crumbling infrastructure - the challenges keep stacking up. But can business step in where government is failing and help put the country back on solid footing?

Join us for this urgent conversation with moderator Justice Malala, political economist Moeletsi Mbeki, corporate leader Bonang Mohale, founder of ActionSA Herman Mashaba and CEO of Sakeliga, Piet le Roux. The Burning Platform

How do criminals exploit borders, trade systems, and corruption to move their money? For most of us the idea of ‘fake’ cigarettes and illicit trade really came to the fore during the Covid Lockdowns when even law abiding South Africans found themselves looking in the strangest places for their fix. Since then the conversations about illicit trade, the financial Action Task Force greylisting of South Africa for among others terror funding and funny money has become an almost daily conversation.

Phumi Mashigo speaks to Rohan Pike, a commonwealth law enforcement expert on border controls, foreign bribery, trade crime, money laundering and corruption to compare how South Africa is doing in contrast with other countries faced with similar challenges. The Burning Platform

Is Helen Zille right for mayor of JHB? Has the mainstream media

left us in the lurch when thinking about our choices? And has the ANC

abandoned its post when choosing who to put forward for the positions of

mayor? Phumi Mashigo asks these of her esteemed panel: Sabelo Skiti,

Sunday Times Investigative Journalist, Mayihlome Tshwete, former

government spokesperson and political commentator, and Solly Msimanga,

DA Gauteng Leader. The Burning Platform

Is Helen Zille right for mayor of JHB? Has the mainstream media left us in the lurch when thinking about our choices? And has the ANC abandoned its post when choosing who to put forward for the positions of mayor? Phumi Mashigo asks these of her esteemed panel: Sabelo Skiti, Sunday Times Investigative Journalist; Mayihlome Tshwete, former government spokesperson and political commentator; and Solly Msimanga, DA Gauteng Leader. The Burning Platform

Who's profiting from SA’s black market? Who's paying the price? And what will it take to stop the cycle of chaos? Following from our previous Democracy Unplugged panel on crime, host Penuel the Black Pen continues the discussion with Free Market Foundation CEO David Ansara, Business Unity South Africa CEO Khulekani Mathe and Chad Thomas, IRS Forensic Investigations CEO. The Burning Platform