A case has been opened at the police after electrical cables had been stolen from the Govan Mbeki Municipality store, next to the fire station, on Wednesday, October 6.
GMM’s communications officer, Mr Lucky Mhlongo could not confirm the time of the incident, however, they said it happened at night.
It is also not known if employees were threatened or held at gunpoint as the matter is still under police investigation.
According to Mr Mhlongo, it is unknown how much cable were stolen and the value thereof, nor is it known if this is the first time cables have been stolen from the store.
The Ridge Times asked Mr Mhlongo if there were any security measures such as security personnel or security cameras and how cables were stolen under their noses?
“There are parts of the facility with security measures and the confidentiality thereof cannot be disclosed,” said Mr Mhlongo.
He said it is also unknown if GMM employees were involved in the theft.
He said that GMM is “strengthening security measures” to prevent such incidents from happening again.
DA councilor, Ms Mariaan Chamberlain, said: “This is not the first time that cables have been stolen from the store.
”She explained of a locked container with transformers that had previously been “burgled and vandalised” as well as batteries for the refuse trucks had been stolen in the past year.
She said that the recent cable theft is questionable as it was a “huge wooden reel” with the cables wrapped around it. It could not be loaded onto a normal truck with a TLB.
“Nothing else besides a crane can lift the wooden reels of cables. How much cable was on it, I cannot tell you.
“Why the security did not make any alarm, with the fire station being next to the store, I cannot tell. The case is under investigation,” said Ms Chamberlain.
She said the cables were allegedly not locked away and was easily accessible.
She wants to see residents vote and support the DA as the biggest opposition in the council.
“The DA can bring change. I would urge everyone on November 1 to vote. If you do not vote, you do not have the right to complain afterwards. There is no service delivery under the ANC,” concluded Ms Chamberlain.
