EFF to open a criminal case against the ActionSA mayor under which it serves in a coalition government

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) announced that it will open a criminal case against Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya.

What makes this decision perplexing is that the EFF serves in the City of Tshwane coalition government under Moya.

On Tuesday, 20 October 2026, the EFF said it would open a criminal case against Moya and the Tshwane City Manager.

It explained that this case would be opened by the EFF Treasurer-General and Tshwane Mayoral Candidate, Omphile Maotwe.

The case is based on the failure to chlorinate water at the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Plant, which caused a health disaster.

Sewage contamination of the Bronkhorstspruit River and failures to warn residents about the risks associated with unsafe drinking water caused the crisis.

ActionSA Tshwane caucus spokesperson, Henriette Frohlich, said the EFF’s criminal case displays its hypocrisy as it is a coalition party in the city.

“The EFF is entitled to demand accountability. What it cannot credibly do is pretend to be an opposition party in a government in which it serves,” she said.

Since October 2024, the EFF has governed Tshwane alongside ActionSA and other parties in the multiparty coalition government.

It holds two portfolios in the Mayoral Committee: Environment and Agriculture Management, led by Obakeng Ramabodu, and Health, led by Tshegofatso Mashabela.

“These portfolios are directly relevant to the broader crisis unfolding in Bronkhorstspruit,” Frohlich said.

She said that the responsibility for the operational failure to chlorinate water falls within the water and sanitation function.

However, the broader public health and environmental dimensions of this crisis raise questions about political oversight across the administration.

This, she said, includes the portfolios led by the EFF’s own representatives in the City of Tshwane’s government.

The DA has also opened a criminal case linked to the disaster

The EFF is not the only party that opened a criminal case against the city for the Bronkhorstspruit water crisis.

Yesterday, the DA opened a criminal case at Pretoria Central South African Police Service (SAPS) against the City of Tshwane.

This case is based on the City of Tshwane failing to maintain safe drinking water standards at the treatment plants serving Bronkhorstspruit.

Cilliers Brink, the DA Tshwane Mayoral Candidate, said the city’s records and whistleblower evidence confirm the crisis.

They showed that cholera bacteria have been detected in samples from the Bronkhorstspruit Wastewater Treatment Works.

“Neglect created this public health crisis. The City failed to chlorinate water at the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Plant for three weeks,” Brink said.

“We warned Mayor Nasiphi Moya and her ANC-ActionSA coalition repeatedly about the collapse of this plant.”

“They ignored the warnings. They continued to starve infrastructure of maintenance while pouring money into water tankers.”

“Last year, the ANC-ActionSA administration spent R777 million on water tankers and only R181 million on repairs and maintenance of water infrastructure.”

“That is not a coincidence. That is a choice. The water tanker mafia has been enriched while the taps of Bronkhorstspruit, Zithobeni, and Ekangala ran dirty or dry.”

He called on Moya to explain why the city failed to chlorinate the plant and why residents were not warned in time.