Masilonyana Local Municipality covers Brandfort, Theunissen, Winburg and Verkeerdevlei in the central Free State. At a Standing Committee on Public Accounts hearing on 26 May 2026 the Auditor-General's Free State business unit recorded nine disclaimer opinions in ten years, three under the current administration; irregular expenditure of R19.7 million in 2022/23 and R47.4 million in 2024/25; Eskom debt above R300 million; and electricity losses through meter tampering so severe that the municipality collects about R1.2 million a month against a R5.5 million Eskom bill. An MK Party member described the officials as "skilled to loot". The municipal manager and CFO said they had been appointed in 2023/24 and inherited the position; the administrator appointed under s139(1)(b) from 1 February 2026 was absent "due to a family issue".
Proclamation 182 of 2024, gazetted on 13 September 2024, authorises the Special Investigating Unit to investigate the Refurbishment of Brandfort Water Treatment Works and Raw Water Pump Stations and the Upgrading of Brandfort Sport Centre Phase II, from 2013 onward. Tender values were not disclosed.