Chronicle Editor
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Reporter
THIEVES broke into Epping Forest pump site in Nyamandlovu and stole electricity copper cables worth nearly $2 million.
The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) immediately allayed fears that the ongoing water shedding in Bulawayo was a result of the theft.
Some suburbs in Bulawayo have been without water since early Saturday morning, a few hours after thieves broke into the Zinwa premises and stole the cables.
Workers at the site said the thieves gained access by breaking a padlock to the main entrance before stealing the cables that were apparently stored within the facility before exiting through the fence at the back.
There is no overnight security at the place.
Epping Forest, commissioned by President Mnangagwa in February last year after Zinwa completed the drilling of 20 boreholes, still pumps between 7 and 8 megalitres (ML) to the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) daily, according to the authority spokesperson Mrs Marjorie Munyonga.
“I am informed that the cable stolen from the Zinwa premises at Nyamandlovu is not in any way linked to the pumping of water to BCC as the cable was not even connected to the system.
It was a cable stored at our station for other work.
Zinwa is still pumping the same amount of water to BCC,” said Mrs Munyonga.
She said a case of theft has since been reported to the police and investigations are ongoing.
“We have since reported the matter to the police and investigations are going on.
Expected value of the stolen cables is $1,8 million,” said Mrs Munyonga.
Theft of copper cables in Zimbabwe now attracts a mandatory 10 year jail sentence, to curb destruction of power and other essential infrastructure which use copper wire.
In July, Parliament passed, without amendments, the Copper Control Amendment Bill.
The theft of copper cables have had a negative impact on the operations of Zesa Holdings, the country’s power utility and signals system of the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ).
The Government has reportedly been losing well over US$2 million annually to theft and vandalism of infrastructure.
Online Reporter