The Democratic Alliance (DA) has received information from a whistleblower that tests conducted at the Bronkhorstspruit Wastewater Treatment Works have detected cholera bacteria in water samples.
The DA has already called on Mayor Nasiphi Moya to release the water-quality test results. If cholera has indeed been detected, this constitutes a serious public health crisis. Residents have a right to know whether their water is safe to drink, and they must be informed immediately.
We will continue with laying criminal charges against the City of Tshwane today.
This is an extremely serious development in the unfolding public health crisis in Bronkhorstspruit, that has resulted in more than 160 being hospitalised.
Last week, the DA revealed information from a whistleblower alleging that the City of Tshwane had failed to chlorinate water at the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Plant for three weeks before the outbreak.
The DA warned Mayor Nasiphi Moya and her ANC-ActionSA coalition about the deteriorating water situation in Bronkhorstspruit. Mayor Moya cannot continue to plead ignorance.
This crisis exposes the consequences of an administration that has prioritised water tankers over fixing the infrastructure that should be delivering clean water to residents’ taps.
During the 2024/25 financial year, ANC-ActionSA coalition spent R777 million, compared with just R181 million spent on repairs and maintenance of water infrastructure.
The ANC and ActionSA have sold Tshwane to the water tanker mafia, and residents are paying the price.
This is why the DA has demanded a forensic investigation into the R777 million water-tanker bill. We want to establish who authorised these contracts, who benefited from them, and why so much money was directed towards water tankers while essential infrastructure deteriorated.
Mayor Moya must immediately account for the City’s handling of this crisis, ensure that residents have access to safe drinking water, and cooperate with an independent investigation into the reported contamination.
The people of Bronkhorstspruit deserve clean water, not excuses from an administration that has created this water crisis.
The ANC-ActionSA coalition must be held accountable. Tshwane’s residents cannot be made to pay for the failures of a government that has put water-tanker contracts ahead of reliable water services.