Cable thieves terrorise Johannesburg and City Power: 'Bring in the army!'
Cable thieves are waging war on the City of Johannesburg’s infrastructure and City Power is pleading for help.
South African National Defence Force Soldiers: Picture Wikimedia Commons: Cpl. Jad Sleiman, US Marine Corps
Bongani Bingwa speaks with Tshifularo Mashava, CEO of City Power.
Listen to the interview in the audio below.
City Power is begging the army to help them address cable theft.
Last week the M1 bridge almost collapsed because of vandals stealing cables and destroying infrastructure.
ALSO READ:
City Power says operations to restore power to parts of Joburg underway
M1 highway fire: 'Fire contained, some areas without power'
Those affected could spend weeks without power while repairs are underway.
Mashava says in this financial year thieves have caused R160 million worth of damage.
City Power has to employ private security, driving up the cost of electricity.
Cable theft is organised, therefore crime intelligence is needed with boots on the ground.
“We need the security cluster to partner with us. This is more a security problem than an energy problem.”
- Tshifularo Mashava, CEO - City Power
Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.