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- The death toll from a suspected cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal has risen to 17.
- A Tshwane council meeting on Wednesday was disrupted by EFF councillors.
- Mayor Cilliers Brink said this week that tests conducted on the water supply in the area had came back negative for cholera.
EFF councillors protested during a council meeting in Tshwane on Wednesday, demanding that Mayor Cilliers Brink drink a glass of water from Hammanskraal.
EFF regional leader Obakeng Ramabodu led his fellow party members in disrupting a council sitting. He said the meeting would not proceed until Brink drank the glass of water the party said was brought from Hammanskraal.
The Gauteng Department of Health said 17 people died from cholera in the Hammanskraal area.
Brink and his political officials in the City of Tshwane contested whether the source of the cholera outbreak was the City's water supply.
READ | Hammanskraal cholera outbreak: Death toll climbs to 17
He said lab tests conducted this week from water from Hammanskraal did not prove positive for the presence of cholera.
The EFF disrupted the meeting, which was intended to hear the presentation of the City's budget, saying the gathering could not continue until Brink drank the water to prove it was safe for human consumption.
♦?Happening Now♦?The @tshwane_mayor must put the residence of Hammanskraal into confidence by drinking the tap water. The EFF calls the DA-led administration for its lack of transparency and accountability in addressing service delivery issues. #BrinkMustDrinktheWater?? pic.twitter.com/E1CoZFuE8g
— EFF Tshwane Region (@TshwaneEff) May 24, 2023
Brink did not drink the water and the meeting was delayed for prolonged caucus breaks.
"We are here to tell you that no council will proceed. We have written a letter to the Speaker that we are going to fight you. We are here to tell you that the council will not proceed and there is nothing you can do about that. You are a group of elites.
"We have water from Hammanskraal; Brink must drink the water because he is busy parading tests saying there is no cholera. So, drink that water and see if you will wake up in the morning. If the water from Hammanskraal is clean, then drink the water and let us get sick together," Ramabodu said.
[WATCH] Testing samples have come back negative for E. Coli and cholera following comprehensive testing on multiple sites around Temba and Hammanskraal areas. pic.twitter.com/Y4NEH1iM7N
— Mayor Cilliers Brink (@tshwane_mayor) May 22, 2023
"The people are dying," the EFF leader said after taking over the council speaker podium. He was surrounded by placard-carrying EFF members.
The source of the cholera outbreak and the symptoms sustained by people living in Hammanskraal is still unclear. But what is known is that the area has had water issues for years.
In some parts, the Rooiwal waste treatment plant had been blamed for the water quality in the area.
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