Vandalism cause for concern

Madam,

There is a major challenge that is taking the country backwards and denying people their basic human right to water supply, and this challenge is infrastructure vandalism. How can we accelerate change to people’s lives by accelerating water supply services when the available infrastructure is vandalised in the form of water meters being stolen.

Infrastructure vandalism takes place in different forms, but there is no justification for this act as it negatively affects communities. Illegal connections are another form of infrastructure vandalism as the illegal connections affect the pressure in the pipelines, leading to some areas of the community, especially the high-lying areas, not receiving much needed water supplies.

We must never condone such acts as they are taking us backwards and infringe people’s basic human rights. The other act of infrastructure vandalism that is most prevalent nowadays is the stripping of water infrastructure to sell as scrap metals. These acts of criminality are having a major negative impact on water and sanitation infrastructure.

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These vandals or brazen criminals are costing the country big time as the infrastructure they steal must be replaced and this costs money and time and affects human lives. Cable theft is also a major challenge and it affects all aspects of life.

Cable theft means electricity supply is affected and this leaves water and sanitation treatment works non-functional. This is a major problem as it leaves people without water and also leads to the pollution of water resources due to malfunctioning waste water treatment works.

The authorities need to beef up security in these key areas and communities must also report any suspicious activities. Infrastructure vandalism happens right in our face. It is now time to take action and root out this scourge of vandalism in our communities.

We cannot continue to look the other way and keep quite while these heartless vandals are destroying our infrastructure, our communities and our country. The time to stop infrastructure vandalism is now. As communities stand up to protect the infrastructure, law enforcement authorities must also come to the party to support the efforts of the communities.

SUSPICIOUS

Scrap metal dealers must also play their role in preventing infrastructure vandalism by not buying suspicious products.

If they stop the market, there will be limited infrastructure vandalism.

Law enforcement agencies must also do regular spot checks of these scrap metal dealers to ensure that there are no suspicious products that might be the result of infrastructure vandalism.

Municipalities, local authorities and other government authorities must also regularly engage and update communities to prevent illegal connections. The authorities must also ensure that the water and waste water treatment plants are well protected and maintained to ensure the reliable supply of quality water.

Accelerating change is in our hands and the time is now to play a role in protecting our water and electricity infrastructure from vandalism to ensure that everyone has reliable water supply. After all, water is life and a basic human right, so let us all play a positive role to ensure that no one is denied the source of life and a basic human right.

Themba Khoza