Reports about another attempted cable theft have surfaced after residents in Irene were recently disturbed in the early hours of the morning when the cables were nearly stolen.
One of the residents said the perpetrators might have been disturbed by security guards who were patrolling the area and left immediately, failing to cut off cables. It has been reported that cable theft has caused the Tshwane metro millions and the challenge is an endless headache.
Ward 65 councillor, Christa Spoelstra, said the CPF and the security firms are playing a major role by patrolling the area in order to fight cable theft. Councillor Spoelstra further said the Electricity department managed to get about R2m for new cables to be installed in the Smuts Museum area.
She added that they are currently busy planning the route and installation thereof. New plans for the Cornwall Hill and Irene Glen areas are said to be in the pipeline. “Irene will also be linked with the new Cornwall Hill station in the near future, but these plans are not yet finalised.
” The Electricity department has assured residents about the elimination of power failures and cable theft. According to Councillor Ina Strijdom, DA spokesperson for Electricity, there has been a definite decline in cable theft in Centurion over the last two months. Last week a cable thief, who was arrested during the last few months in Eldoraigne by Combined Private Investigators (CPI), appeared in court and was sentenced to a 3-year imprisonment.
CPIs in Highveld Technopark also recently arrested another cable thief. He will appear in court soon. During the previous financial year, Region 4 embarked on replacing overhead copper cables by ABC conductors in high-risk areas such as Clubview, Erasmia and Valhalla. These replacements are now bearing fruit. During this financial year other high-risk areas will be identified for replacements.
Irene CPF member Cilliers Du Preez said regular patrols are conducted in order to curb cable theft. He said together with the security firms, this would lower the theft of cables in the area. Warrant Officer Hero Gumbu confirmed that almost every month people are arrested in connection with cable theft in Centurion. He urged communities to work hand in hand with the CPF and the police to bring cable thieves to justice.
He further emphasised that police will continue to do their job and arrest those who disobey the law.
