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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
THE VICTORIA Falls Municipality management has expressed concern over vandalism of solar street lights by some residents who allegedly steal panels and batteries for household use.
Town Clerk Mr Ronnie Dube said vandals had destroyed about 60 percent of street lights that were installed by CBZ Bank as part of the US$12 million housing project launched three years ago to service 1 200 low cost housing units.
A snap survey around the Barfour Zone and BD847 new suburbs showed that almost all street lights no longer have solar panels and batteries.
Thieves have dug out batteries that were buried underground on the foot of the street pole and removed solar panels. Some of the items are being used in newly built houses where there is no electricity.
“We have noted this trend with concern because about 60 percent of solar streets lights have been destroyed,” said Mr Dube.
He appealed to residents to jealously guard infrastructure as it benefits them and not the council.
“This is community property and not municipality property. The community should act because it is their children who vandalise infrastructure. We as the community provide them with the market as we buy these stolen solar panels and batteries.
“We have been talking to police and other stakeholders through our municipal security but it has not been helping. It’s the same residents who will be complaining about darkness on the streets because there are no street lights,” lamented Mr Dube.
He said the municipality has tasked councillors to engage residents in their wards to stop the habit of stealing and vandalising infrastructure.
Combined Victoria Falls Residents Association chairman Mr Morgen Dube appealed to residents not to buy the stolen property.
“We applaud CBZ and council for the housing scheme because it’s rare to have fully serviced land that also includes street lights. Sadly, our lights have been vandalised and hardly by non-residents. If it is non-residents, we believe they then sell to us hence I urge residents not to buy such things but should report them to the police,” he said.
The municipality has been bidding for investors to finance another solar street lighting project to also include traffic lights.
Two years ago, the local authority cancelled a US$1,7 million solar street lighting contract with Mechanical Electrical Distribution after the Harare company failed to deliver.
The municipality had entered into an agreement with the company to install solar street and traffic lights in a public-private partnership.
This would have seen the local authority installing the first ever robots and tower lights as well as street lights in the resort town in exchange for advertising space on billboards. — @ncubeleon.
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