Tshwane mayor ‘enables the water mafia’
· Citizen
Smaller parties could have helped the DA deliver real progress in Tshwane, such as a project to bring clean water to Hammanskraal, Tshwane DA mayoral candidate Cilliers Brink says.
“ActionSA’s Nasiphi Moya wears the mayoral chain, but as we’ve seen from the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, she is fronting for an ANC power grab.
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Millions spent on tankers
“In the year mayor Moya took office, spending on water tankers to formalised areas exploded from R140 million under the DA to R777 million under the ANC coalition,” he added.
Brink said Tshwane spends more money trucking water than fixing pipes and upgrading infrastructure that would make water flow to taps.
“We know who benefits from these water tanker tenders. In Tshwane, the deputy mayor and regional ANC chair is also a water tanker tenderpreneur doing business with the city.
“But the ActionSA mayor keeps him in his position as MMC for finance,” he added.
The Sunday Times reported that a R95 million tender was allegedly awarded to Eunice Nontobeko Mkhonza in 2025, despite her company, situated in Soshanguve, not owning any tankers.
Her company was one of about 40 companies that Tshwane allegedly paid R777 million for water tanker services.
Mkhonza was also allegedly linked to Mandla Jeffrey Mgcina, director of another water company that also benefited from a R5.5 million tender. Mgcina was also mentioned at the Madlanga commission last month and linked to Tshwane chief financial officer Gareth Mnisi.
In March, the Special Investigating Unit was authorised to investigate allegations of corruption and irregularities linked to water tanker services in the City of Tshwane following concerns of a water tanker mafia.
Vultures circling the water sector
At the beginning of April, Moya launched what she described as a radical plan to stabilise the water supply in the city by adding 15 new municipal water tankers to its fleet, bringing the city’s total to 41 municipal tankers.
Moya said the aim was to have 100 municipal tankers rather than outsourcing.
WaterCAN’s Ferrial Adam said vultures were circling the water sector, feeding off its dysfunction.
“It is not only water tankers – the failure to maintain reservoirs and repair leaking pipes is also becoming a lucrative space for profiteering.
“The longer infrastructure is allowed to fail, the more lucrative emergency procurement becomes and the harder it is to dismantle these networks,” she said.
Adam said it was no longer just about irregular expenditure.
“It raises serious concerns about conflicts of interest, political interference and whether officials or their associates may be benefiting from a crisis that leaves communities without water.
“Where wrongdoing is established, public funds must be recovered and implicated officials must face disciplinary action and be fired.
“WaterCAN repeats its call for urgent, independent investigations and lifestyle audits to restore accountability,” she added.
Tshwane mayoral spokesperson Samkelo Mgobozi said the mayor would not comment on the matter yet.
Senior ANC figures, including deputy mayor Eugene Modise and regional treasurer James Shelenge, have allegedly been linked to some of the payments. Shelenge reportedly spent R11 million on luxury cars and property soon after his company was paid R30 million.
Additional reporting by Faizel Patel