City Power official busted with four drum rolls of cables
No one is above reproach in the fight against corruption and cable theft, including City Power employees - City Power MD.
JOHANNESBURG SOUTH – A senior City Power official was arrested after he was found in possession of four cable drum rolls with a combined value of over R1 million.
The official’s identity cannot be disclosed until he appears before the South Gauteng High Court on charges of cable theft and the possession of stolen property.
The Hawks, the South African Police Service (SAPS) and City Power are continuing their investigation to establish whether he was working with any syndicates responsible for numerous spates of cable theft around Johannesburg.
Sicelo Xulu, managing director of City Power, said he is encouraged by this breakthrough as it demonstrates the utility’s unwavering commitment to rid itself of corrupt practices.
“No one is above reproach in the fight against corruption and cable theft, including City Power employees. We need to lead by example and reaffirm our zero tolerance for corrupt practices. The arrest of this official is a culmination of months of painstaking work by the police and our officials, and we are pleased with this breakthrough as it further cripples the efforts of these syndicates and spares the residents of Johannesburg a spate of unplanned power cuts and millions in lost revenue,” said Xulu.
Xulu thanked the Hawks and the SAPS for their sterling work and once again appealed to members of the community to continue to work with City Power and law enforcement agencies to report suspected incidents of cable theft.
Cable theft is conservatively estimated to cost the South African economy about R5 billion a year. Xulu said besides the cost of replacing the infrastructure and damaged equipment, cable theft contributes to increased electricity tariffs.
Earlier this year, government tabled a Criminal Matters Amendment Bill which seeks to impose more stringent sentences on suspects convicted of cable theft.
“We are encouraged by the gravity and urgency with which government is taking this issue, and we hope that the amendments to the bill will be fast-tracked to bring the perpetrators of cable theft and the syndicates behind them to book. We are confident that the imposition of maximum sentences will serve as a deterrent to those who selfishly regard our infrastructure as vulnerable prey and an easy source of revenue,” Xulu said.
