Tshwane losing the war against cable theft?

There are concerns about sabotage and vandalism after repeated cable theft incidents in the City of Tshwane this past week.

DA spokesperson for corporate and shared services Dana Wannenburg said the ongoing cable theft crisis in Region 1 and Ward 98 has reached a critical level, with repeated theft incidents causing prolonged power outages and severe disruptions to service delivery.

“On Willem Cruywagen Road, a five metre cable was stolen again, leading to another unexpected power outage. This is unacceptable and immediate intervention is required,” he said.

“The ongoing cable theft in Ward 98 is not only affecting residents but is now crippling essential services and businesses in the area.

“The latest theft has left the Klerksoord industrial area without power, directly impacting businesses and the local economy,” he said.

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Government services grind to a halt

Wannenburg said it was concerning that key government institutions, including the home affairs offices, municipal courts, Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) offices, and the licensing office, were not able to operate because of the outages.

“This is unacceptable. The lack of urgency in addressing cable theft is now causing major economic losses, administrative backlogs and service delivery failures,” he added. 

Call to intervene

Wannenburg said residents and businesses cannot continue to suffer due to this ongoing crisis and has called on the city and TMPD to intervene.

“Furthermore, the recent fibre damage in Centurion has brought the city’s IT network to a halt, demonstrating the far-reaching consequences of infrastructure sabotage. The lack of a decisive and proactive strategy to combat cable theft is crippling our communities and essential services.” 

MMC for community safety Hannes Coetzee said earlier this week that the TMPD cable theft unit intercepted an attempted act of economic sabotage at the Fouriesburg substation in Centurion.

“Acting swiftly on intelligence received while patrolling, officers discovered six individuals unlawfully accessing the substation using a duplicate key. 

“These suspects, who failed to produce any authorisation, were caught drilling through the infrastructure with the intent to interfere with our electricity supply,” he said.

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An attack on residents

Coetzee said it was not just an isolated incident of criminal activity but an attack on the residents of Tshwane, on businesses struggling to recover from economic pressures and the very foundation of service delivery.

“Cable theft and infrastructure vandalism directly affect our communities, leading to power outages, economic losses and increased vulnerability to crime.

“The suspects have been arrested and are facing serious charges, including trespassing, as well as damaging and tampering with essential infrastructure which had been dismantled,” he said.

“We expect the full might of the law to take its course and urge the justice system to deal decisively with those who undermine the well-being of our residents.

“We will not rest until all criminal networks target critical Tshwane infrastructure. Criminal syndicates that seek to destabilise our communities by targeting critical infrastructure must know that their days are numbered,” Coetzee added.

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