Chronicle Editor
Michael Magoronga, [email protected]
Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) Southern Region has lost infrastructure worth US$22 500 to vandalism and theft in the first three months of the year, a development that is hindering the progress of new projects.
In the first quarter, the region , mostly in the Midlands province has witnessed 36 cases of infrastructure consisting of transformers, multi-core cables, copper conductors and copper cables
Gweru and Kwekwe each reported 14 cases, Zvishavane and Mvuma had two each and Chivhu has four.
Last year, 156 cases with a value of US$279 000 of vandalism and meter bypass were recorded between January and December 2023.
The Acting General Manager of the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) in the Southern Region, Engineer Wonder Mangwanda said the situation has halted the company’s developmental projects in the area.
“There is a rise in Zesa equipment theft and vandalism in the Southern Region. The region’s inability to implement new projects is being severely hampered by the vandalism of electricity infrastructure as available funds are being directed towards replacing vandalised equipment,” said Eng Mangwanda.
He said the development has weighed heavily on power supply as it has resulted in unplanned power outages.
“Theft and vandalism of electricity infrastructure has resulted in increased faults leading to frequent and long power outages that some clients perceive to be load shedding. Power supply is greatly being compromised by increasing cases of theft and vandalism that has resulted in unplanned power outages,” he said.
As a remedy, the company is pursuing several strategies, which include patrols, special operations in liaison with other security agents and awareness campaigns.
“The power utility is appealing to community participation in the protection of electricity infrastructure in the interests of efficient service delivery. In the same vein, ZETDC, is inviting whistle-blowers to volunteer information that would lead to the arrest of perpetrators of theft and vandalism and a reward would be given to proven cases,” he said.
Eng Mangwanda, however, hailed the courts for lengthy sentences that would serve as deterrents to would-be offenders.
“A total of ten accused persons have since been slapped with a mandatory 10-year jail sentence since February. This shows the courts are doing their best in controlling the menace,” he said.
The power utility has since partnered with the University of Zimbabwe for a symposium to try and come up with long-term solutions to the problem.
In a press statement, ZETDC is calling for organisations that may proffer long-term solutions in as far as hardening infrastructure, forensic analysis, international collaborations, cyber security measures and urban design aesthetic among others, as a way of curtailing this challenge.
“ZETDC and UZ recognise the critical issue of vandalism within the power and energy sector. In response to this challenge, ZETDC and UZ are calling for abstracts on innovative solutions to address the root cause of vandalisms and exploring effective preventive measures under the theme “Mitigating Power and Energy Vandalism Symposium.”
The symposium is scheduled for May 24.
Online Reporter