POLOKWANE – Cable theft in Polokwane has been on the rise as is evident from the quarterly crime statistics from January 1 to  March 31, 2023.

Announcing the statistics last Friday, provincial police commissioner Lt Gen Thembi Hadebe said 63 people were arrested across Limpopo and 1 451 cases of theft of copper cables were recorded during the three-month period alone.

Polokwane Observer has reported about cable theft which became rife in the city over the Easter weekend, with multiple incidents recorded in areas such as Ladanna, Seshego, Mankweng and Westenburg.

Recently, Polokwane mayoral committee member on energy provision Desmond Moloto mentioned sporadic incidents in parts of the city where traffic lights were faulty and their wires cut. This included intersections on the Matlala Road into the city and in Ladanna.

In the past, the municipality reported a shortage of material to replace stolen cables and announced expenditure of nearly R10m in repairs for the 2023/24 financial year.

Hadebe said this is a challenge that requires immediate attention.

“We need to work together as society, the business community and all stakeholders to ensure that there is no space for these perpetrators to operate. As much as we conduct random visits and searches at scrap metal dealers to search for stolen copper cables and transformers, dealers should also play their part by not allowing people to sell stolen copper cables to them and report those who are buying them.”

In addition, Hadebe appealed to the community to establish street patrols, rural safety forums, community police forums and community in blue forums to jointly address the issue of cable theft.