THE Greater Tubatse Municipality and Eskom warned residents of Kgautswane village to stop the illegal connection of electricity, tampering with electricity meter boxes and cable theft, during a Batho Pele event on Tuesday.
According to both institutions, illegal electricity connections were plentiful in the area.
Greater Tubatse spokesperson, Thabiso Mokoena, appealed to the people to work with the police and report any criminal activities. He said stealing electricity meter boxes could result in load shedding and even death.
Mokoena also advised residents to buy electric units at legal outlets.He said cable theft was hampering the country’s economy.
Eskom senior manager, Maboe Maphaka, said cable theft cost the company millions of rands each year.
He said it also cost consumers money as cable theft also caused power surges, which could damage electrical appliances.
“When a customer comes to Eskom to claim for a fridge that has burnt out and Eskom comes back and says ‘look, we can’t pay you for this’, as customers, you are aggrieved’, and then Eskom becomes this uncaring organisation,” he said.
“Cable theft is a massive problem throughout South Africa.
“Most affected are the big agencies that provide the backbone of the South African economy: The telecommunications agency, Telkom, the transport agency, Transnet, and the electric company, Eskom.
“The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry is lobbying for cable theft to be classified as economic sabotage, which would lead to tougher punishment for the culprits,” Maphaka said.
