The long-term use of chemical toilets in informal settlements is inappropriate and expensive and should be replaced by better waterless sanitation at lower cost. The chemical toilet mafia in Ekurhuleni and elsewhere should be fought relentlessly – it is as bad as the water tanker mafia in profiting off the misery of poor people.
This was my message today at the official handover of three Myloo Dry Sanitation Units to elderly residents at Refilwe in Cullinan, Gauteng. These units were donated by Amaloolo (Pty) Ltd as part of their Corporate Social Investment for Mandela Day.
Chemical toilets are best used for emergency or short-term relief, at construction sites, or events such as festivals and sports matches. They have high maintenance costs as they need to be frequently emptied and chemicals replaced. When they are not properly maintained, they are smelly, they overflow, and they are a hygiene risk.
It is shocking that chemical toilet contracts worth about R1.8 billion are now under investigation in Ekurhuleni. Forensic auditor Mpho Mafole was murdered days after flagging major irregularities in these tenders, and Simnikiwe Mapini was also murdered in December 2023 when he was probing them. There is evidence that these contracts are linked to politically connected people.
It reminds me of Babita Deokaran, who was assassinated because she exposed the R2 billion looting at Tembisa Hospital.
Last year, Ekurhuleni spent R665 million on 46 322 chemical toilets. This works out at R14 500 for each toilet, which is outrageous. Many of these toilets are unusable and not cleaned regularly. It’s a scam, and it’s not limited to Ekurhuleni. The SIU, for instance, found a R2.5 million contract for chemical toilets in KwaZulu-Natal schools in 2020 was awarded without any competitive bidding.
We are all shocked by the water tanker mafia that destroys water infrastructure so they can get lucrative contracts to supply water. I think the chemical toilets mafia is as outrageous as the water tanker mafia. In both cases, people suffer because of greedy tenderpreneurs who profit off the suffering of the poorest people.
I am going to make it my personal mission to get municipalities to cancel corrupt chemical toilet contracts and replace them with better waterless toilets at lower cost.
