The Free State Health Department says the Water and Sanitation Department and municipalities are the only authenticated authorities to speak about water quality.
This after the lobby group AfriForum said an expert had tested water in areas along the Vaal River and found that there were more cholera cases in seven areas of the province.
AfriForum said the areas included Parys and Thabong in Welkom.
The department’s spokesperson, Mondli Mvambi, says there are no new cholera infections and the death toll remains at two in the province.
“The Free State Department of Health can confirm that there is no cholera outbreak in Matjhabeng. But we continue to encourage members of the public to drink water from sources that are reliable and treatable water, not drink water that is untreated from the rivers and anywhere else. That is the message we are sticking with.”
In the report below from last month, Mvambi spoke to SABC News about the death of the second cholera patient in the province:
