City of Tshwane executive mayor Nasiphi Moya has strongly rejected claims that cholera has been detected in Bronkhorstspruit’s water supply, calling the allegations misleading and politically motivated.
The Democratic Alliance has claimed it received whistleblower information that cholera bacteria was detected in water samples at the Bronkhorstspruit Wastewater Treatment Works. The party’s Tshwane mayoral candidate, former mayor Cilliers Brink, has also alleged the city spent R777 million on water tankers during 2024/25 while failing to maintain water infrastructure, leading to a crisis that has hospitalised more than 160 people.
Moya said cholera has not been identified as the cause of the gastrointestinal illness outbreak.
“While a variant of Vibrio cholerae was identified in water samples, the technical information provided to the City indicates that this is not the variant associated with epidemic cholera,” she said in a statement on Tuesday.
The mayor added that no cholera bacteria have been detected in patient stool samples tested to date.
She accused Brink of exploiting the water crisis for political advantage and creating unnecessary fear among residents.
“It is particularly irresponsible for him to create the impression that another cholera outbreak has been confirmed when the available evidence does not support that conclusion,” Moya said.
She noted Brink had himself cautioned against premature conclusions during the Hammanskraal cholera outbreak in 2023 when he was executive mayor.
Budget and spending disputed
Moya defended the city’s spending on water infrastructure, saying budget allocations for the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Works have increased substantially under the current administration.
The city approved R1.2 million for the plant in 2023/24 and R5 million for 2024/25 during Brink’s mayoralty. After the change of administration, the 2024/25 allocation was increased to R6 million.
The city recorded R20.8 million in actual spending on the plant’s refurbishment in 2025/26, with R57 million approved for 2026/27 and R30 million for 2027/28.
“This represents more than R107 million in expenditure and planned investment over the three financial years from 2025/26 to 2027/28 alone,” Moya said.
She rejected Brink’s R777 million water tanker claim, saying the figure included R156 million in cancelled, duplicated or unprocessed transactions.
The mayor said actual spending was R441 million, of which R99 million was incurred before the current administration took office. She added that R180 million in unpaid invoices for water tanker services from 2023/24 under Brink’s administration had to be settled in the following financial year.
DA demands investigation
Brink said the DA had called on Moya to release water quality test results and would lay criminal charges against the city.
“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,” he said.
Brink claimed the city failed to chlorinate water at the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Plant for three weeks before the outbreak.
He alleged the ANC-ActionSA coalition spent R777 million on water tankers in 2024/25 compared with just R181 million on repairs and maintenance of water infrastructure.
“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,” Brink said.
“The ANC and ActionSA have sold Tshwane to the water tanker mafia, and residents are paying the price.”
He demanded a forensic investigation into water tanker contracts to establish who authorised them and who benefited.
Moya said the city would continue working with national and provincial governments and independent technical experts to address the situation in Bronkhorstspruit.
“The people of Bronkhorstspruit deserve accurate information and practical solutions, not attempts to turn a public-health emergency into an opportunity for political campaigning,” she said.
