During the past few weeks, the City of Tshwane has been experiencing a spate of incidents of cable theft, vandalism and infrastructure tampering, which cause a great inconvenience to residents.
These incidents of theft and vandalism disrupt the water and electricity supply, which can leave residents without power and water for days.
In some instances, the main aim of these criminal activities is to collapse service delivery to communities. The City appeals to communities to play a role in helping to safeguard such infrastructure. With autumn upon us, our residents will experience the devastating impact of power and water interruption for extended periods of time because of sabotage. Hence, the importance of proactively protecting the network, assets and amenities of the City.
This essential infrastructure may belong to the City, but is meant for the benefit of the community for the provision of water and electricity services. Communities are urged to guard these assets with jealousy, as they are the ones who tend to suffer the most when cables are stolen and substations are damaged. The City also calls upon community-based crime-prevention organisations, community policing forums and security companies to be vigilant in thwarting the scourge of theft and vandalism on the City’s assets.
Cable theft and vandalism of the City’s infrastructure are a major financial burden on the City’s already stretched budget and jeopardise the functionality of essential infrastructure that is key for service delivery to our communities. Recently, the community of Rayton in Region 7 prevented the attempted vandalism of their substation, thanks to the installation of cameras that captured the activities of the vandals and activated a quick response from the local security company.
This community-oriented partnership with a private security company prevented a potential criminal act and stopped the vandals dead in their tracks. The City implores other communities to emulate the community of Rayton and safeguard infrastructure meant to provide basic services to them. Technology has proven to be an effective tool in preventing attacks on the City’s infrastructure.
The City strives for a safer city through the installation of surveillance cameras and other technology, supported by law enforcement agencies, which would thwart and prevent planned criminal activity on municipal infrastructure.
Communities are urged to report any suspicious activities to the Tshwane Metro Police Department 24-hour line on 012 358 7095/7096 or the Cable Theft Hotline on 080 011 2722.