South African president admits failure in prevention of cholera outbreak

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa sought to reassure residents of a community near the capital, Pretoria, after an outbreak of cholera killed 29 people.

During a visit to the local water treatment plant, Ramaphosa admitted the government had failed to prevent the outbreak.

“The water that comes out of the Temba water works is not fit for human consumption. So we have really dropped the ball for our people here in Tshwane, and I went on as much as to admit that”, said South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa.

Investigations are ongoing to try to identify the source of the outbreak.

On Wednesday, provincial health authorities said that since last week, 165 people have visited a local hospital in Hammanskraal with symptoms including diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting.

“I’m told now that the incidence of people going into hospitals with cholera has really come down, the investigations are still ongoing to finally determine where the source of this was”, concluded the president.

South Africa recorded its first two cholera cases in February on the back of outbreaks in nearby Mozambique and Malawi, the two most severely affected countries in 2023, according to the UN.

Africanews/Hauwa M.