DA federal chairperson Solly Msimanga has taken a brutal swipe at the EFF’s record in Ekurhuleni, saying residents are ‘living in shit’ because the party allegedly ‘failed’ to get the municipality’s water and sanitation systems working.
Speaking at a DA event on Tuesday evening as part of the party’s campaign ahead of the November local government elections, Msimanga said voters should be wary of political parties claiming to have solutions despite their record in municipalities they have governed.
“Don’t fall into the temptation of those who are saying they have a plan when they haven’t even showed where their plans work or where they have governed successfully,” Msimanga said.
He then turned his attention to the EFF’s involvement in Ekurhuleni’s water and sanitation portfolio.
“They are those wearing red hats. They will come and tell you they have been working at municipalities. Go and ask what has been happening at Ekurhuleni — it’s a mess,” he said.
“People are living in shit in Ekurhuleni. People are swimming in shit in Ekurhuleni.”
Msimanga accused those responsible for the municipality’s water and sanitation systems of allowing infrastructure to deteriorate, creating an environment in which temporary solutions such as water tankers and mobile toilets could flourish.
“Because of those that ensured that they are not able to get toilets working. They cannot get the systems working. Instead, they throw their part of ensuring that systems don’t work so that those that are tanker mafias can go in there,” he said.
The EFF has held positions within Ekurhuleni’s mayoral committee responsible for water, sanitation and related infrastructure portfolios, including through MMCs Thembi Msane and Leshaka Manamela.
Msimanga said residents should not have to depend on temporary interventions to access basic services.
“Those that are supplying toilets can go in there. The mobile toilets can go in there,” he said.
“We are saying we don’t want temporary solutions anymore. We want permanent solutions that can give people a dignified life.”
His remarks come amid longstanding political battles over Ekurhuleni’s water, sanitation and infrastructure challenges, with opposition parties repeatedly criticising the metro over service delivery failures and the use of temporary sanitation measures.
Msimanga also raised concerns about the allocation of municipal contracts, suggesting that politically connected individuals had benefited from the provision of water tankers and mobile toilets while residents continued to experience poor services.
He said the focus should be on examining who was receiving contracts and what communities were receiving in return.
“So when you hear that people who are drivers of certain political leaders who are now all of a sudden multi-millionaires because of Ekurhuleni, you know, the contracts that they got out of people who live and all of that, we must ask ourselves, where people are getting contracts to supply water tankers, to supply mobile toilets, what are our people getting at the end of the day?” he said.
Msimanga remarks comes against the backdrop of recent investigative reports into Ekurhuleni’s chemical-toilet contracts, which have raised questions about alleged procurement irregularities and the beneficiaries of the lucrative tenders.
News24 recently reported that TTTB Supplying and Construction, a company linked to Tebadi Collins Foromo, a former personal driver of EFF leader Julius Malema, was among the companies that benefited from Ekurhuleni’s chemical-toilet contracts. The report also examined how companies linked to individuals with connections to Malema benefited from municipal sanitation tenders.
The municipality’s chemical-toilet programme has also been the subject of a forensic investigation. In 2025, Ekurhuleni’s head of corporate and forensic audits, Mpho Mafole, was killed shortly after completing an audit into a R1.8 billion mobile chemical-toilet tender. Investigative reports said his work had identified irregularities in the procurement process.
The circumstances surrounding Mafole’s killing remain under investigation, and no conclusion has been established linking his murder to the audit. A suspect was arrested in connection with his death in July 2025.
Msimanga’s comments form part of the DA’s broader campaign message that municipalities should move away from what the party describes as politically connected contracting and temporary interventions towards permanent infrastructure and reliable basic services.
The DA is campaigning ahead of the 4 November local government elections, with Ekurhuleni among the Gauteng municipalities where political parties are expected to battle for control.
Msimanga said the party’s focus would be on ensuring that residents received functioning services rather than repeatedly relying on emergency measures.
“We don’t want temporary solutions anymore,” he said.
“We want permanent solutions that can give people a dignified life.”
The remarks also come as Ekurhuleni continues to face pressure over its finances and service delivery, including challenges around water infrastructure and sanitation.
