The government says it cannot ban the export of copper due to its demand locally and will use punitive measures to deter the theft of electricity copper cables.
The government has since enacted the Copper Amendment Act, which carries a 10-year prison sentence and makes obtaining a license to deal with copper difficult.
These sentiments come after legislators questioned what authorities were doing to stop the rampant theft of electricity copper cables and transformers while the government stands accused of perpetuating the theft of copper cables across the country by issuing copper dealership and copper export licenses when Zimbabwe has reportedly not been mining copper for the past three years.
Responding to inquiries about the theft of electrical cables and transformers in Parliament recently, Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Kazembe Kazembe said it was impossible to withdraw licenses because the country uses a lot of copper.
“We have companies like CAFCA that are using copper cables. We are looking at people who are recycling copper cables in the country. There are a lot of companies that are using copper for electrifying buildings. So we cannot withdraw licenses,” he said.
Kazembe added that prohibiting copper exports was also not ideal because it would force the government to spend more of its limited foreign currency on imports.
“If we stop those who are already using copper, we will be using the little foreign currency that we have to import when we already have copper in the country,” he said.
“I would rather wish that law enforcement would arrest people then use the little foreign currency that we have for other purposes.”
The minister acknowledged that stealing cables and transformers was a scourge that troubled citizens and the government, which was why legislation was effected.
“I brought the Copper Amendment Bill into this Parliament. It sailed through and is now a law. The purpose was to arrest these people who are involved in these acts. Whenever electrical cables are stolen, it is disruptive to domestic, farming and other industrial works,” he said.
Kazembe said those who deal with copper are now mandated to have a certificate of origin which states where they would have bought their copper and where it is going to be used.
“This certificate has unique features on it, it is very difficult to forge. Those dealing with copper will have a certificate of origin which has unique features and if you do not have this, you will be arrested,” he said.
“Again, the vehicle used to transport such copper without proper documentation will also be impounded and the person given a sentence of 10 years. These are some of the measures we have taken to make sure we curb and deal with people who are vandalising these transformers. It is no longer easy to get a license to deal with copper. You need to go through a rigorous process to be cleared.”
There have been allegations that ZESA employees are the ones stealing transformers, as some allege that a few people have been electrocuted while stealing these transformers, leading them to believe that individuals in charge of the electricity infrastructure are to blame.
However, the home affairs minister stated that police were attempting to determine who was responsible for the theft.
“On the issue that this is not a case of a chicken eating its own eggs – we can refuse the fact that there may be employees of ZESA involved in the stealing of transformers and electrical cables. However, the police are working on establishing who exactly is doing such acts of stealing transformers and cables,” he said.
“We have a few cases of people who were electrocuted whilst trying to steal transformers. However, one issue that I want to emphasize to this House is that we need to assist each other. Issues of theft are not left to be dealt with by the police only but we can all work together as a people. For example, at home, we put burglar bars, and boundary walls as security measures. I always tell farmers that if we come together and form neighbourhood watch committees, those who steal transformers actually use vehicles, so it will be easy to arrest these hooligans.”
