Cosatu backs hefty jail terms for cable thieves
Cosatu has come out in support of a draft law proposing heavy jail terms cable and metal theft.
|||Parliament - Trade union federation Cosatu has come out in support of a draft law proposing heavy jail terms for vandalising essential public infrastructure, including cable and metal theft.
This emerged from its submission to the parliamentary justice committee on the Criminal Matters Amendment Bill, which proposes jail terms of up to 30 years for anyone stealing cables and metals. The committee on Tuesday held public hearings on the legislative proposals, announced as “serious economic offences” by President Jacob Zuma after last month’s presidential infrastructure co-ordinating commission (PICC) meeting.
“Cosatu’s support for this Bill is informed by the crisis that South Africa is facing… It is estimated that cable theft costs South Africa up to R7 billion per annum,” said the labour federation, adding other losses accrued through, for example, train delays, making employees late for work, were difficult to calculate.
“Cosatu believes that the proposed harsh sanctions will serve as a strong and effective deterrent to criminals”
Eskom also added its support.
However, the troubled power utility wants lawmakers to delete from the definition of basic services the phrase “interference which may prejudice the livelihood, well-being, daily operations or economic activity of the public”.
The reason? It would ensure that the burden of proof was less onerous, said Eskom chief executive Brian Molefe in a submission: “We now simply need to prove that we provide an energy-related service. We would now be able to rely on the Act without having to demonstrate that the interruption of energy related service prejudiced the livelihood, well-being, daily operations or economic activity of the public”.
In its submission to MPs, Eskom says its losses from, among other, illegal connections, meter tampering, illegal electricity sales and administrative errors related to tampering, manipulation and thefts amounted to about R4.7bn a year. Eskom’s estimates for industry losses ran at more than R10bn annually.
Transnet also supported the draft law because of the impact cable theft and vandalism has had on its operations.
“The cancellation of train slots does impact the economy directly and thus negatively affects the transportation of strategic commodities such as iron ore exports, coal exports, local coal supplying to Eskom power stations, lime to the Rand Water Board for water purification and supply of fuel,” said Transnet’s submission.
However, Lawyers for Human Rights and Legal Aid South Africa argued for court’s discretion on sentencing. Both raised the still-outstanding review of South Africa’s minimum sentencing regimen, dating back over a decade, as reason to stave off the draft law’s proposed jail terms.
Political Bureau