Stop Cable Theft!

How much longer before this entire country will be without an electricity and communications network due to copper cable theft?

Dishonest and criminal scrap metal dealers are the reason why what once used to be National Key Points are looted by cable thiefs for copper. The electricity infrastructure of our country is at risk which may soon cause a national disaster if a stop is not going to be put to cable theft. On a daily basis copper cables are cut off and power stations and sub-stations are looted for copper, which is sold to scrap metal dealers.

Suburbs are left days and sometimes weeks without power due to the theft of power cables.

We as citizens and the community demand that an immediate complete ban be put on the sale of second-hand copper to stop thiefs from stealing cables. This must be followed by a process of reviewing legislation to make it very difficult if not impossible to sell stolen copper cable, and at the same time the penalties for being in posession of stolen copper or being involved in the sale or transport of stolen copper must be increased to very stiff jail sentences, even for first offenders.If there is no market for second-hand copper, cable thiefs will not risk their lives to steal copper cables.

We understand copper is an expensive commodity and needs to be recycled.

Government must however put measures in place to stop the theft, sale, transport and recycling of stolen copper.

Please add your voice to this national crisis

Community Police Forum, Wierdabrug    Contact the author of the petition