Urgent call to stop power vandals

A few weeks ago, I together with colleagues from Umeme visited Gomba to engage our host, the Bishop of Central Buganda Michael Lubowa . 
Our mission was to talk to the Man of God about service and to seek his support to address the masses about the chronic vice of vandalising the electricity network to steal copper wires and other electrical equipment and siphoning of transformer oil in Mpigi and Mityana districts. 

During the conversation,  we deliberated on what motivates the perpetrators of this very risky venture that can end their lives. It emerged that some of the copper wires ended up in the hands of artisans to make hangers for  clothes. 
Imagine the entire planned network supplying electricity to schools, hospitals and businesses, being disconnected for days because someone cut part of it to make hangers for sale at Shs500 a piece.

Days back, there were headlines about how transformer oil ended up on the market and into the frying pans at roadsides as vendors fry chapatti and chips for sale to unsuspecting consumers at the expense of their health. Such acts seem simple but carry very hefty repercussions for individuals and the economy.

According to Uganda’s central bank, the economy has been stable but tougher times are predicted ahead. Recent indications suggest a slower pace of economic growth in the coming months largely on account of the following risks; a further rise in inflation could depress household incomes, thereby reducing consumer spending, constrained investment expenditure on account of high raw materials import costs and a weaker global economy and worsened geopolitical conflicts.

Even so, economic growth remains as projected in the previous MPC at approximately 6 percent for FY2023/2024 and in the range of 5.5 percent to 6.5 percent in the following years,” says BoU in its Monetary Policy Statement for April.
Bishop Lubowa on this called for more collaborative efforts to bring the culprits to book.

On a sad note, these cases are surging on a national scale with western, south western, Greater Busoga, and Central Uganda, costing the country an average of $700,000 or $2.6 billion, annually. 
In western Uganda, Mbarara led the pack, followed by Bushenyi, Rukungiri and Kabale districts. Masaka, Mityana, Mukono, Mpigi, Wakiso and Luweero districts registered big vandalism cases while Iganga, Kamuli and Jinja Districts topped the list in eastern Uganda.

The vandals target transformers, insulated cables commonly referred to as ABC cables, conductors (copper and aluminium), feeder pillars, underground cables, especially copper, isolators, and other accessories. 
The government has several initiatives to increase access to the national grid through partnerships with agencies such as the World Bank, AFD, KFW and others through self-funded connections targeting to drive the numbers to almost two million connections on the national grid.

Uganda’s target of 60 percent electrification by 2030 might elude us because theft and vandalism are impeding electrification. New connections are being slowed down since funding now goes to the replacement of stolen assets and communities suffer increased outages as a result.
Following the adage – “desperate situations call for desperate measures”,  State minister for Energy Sidronius Okaasai Opolot has suggested that the network, including the lower electricity pole areas be energised so that current can shock the vandals.

Some sections have attributed vandalism to unemployment, demand for aluminium and copper, sabotage and ignorance of the impact. 
On the other hand, the electricity sub-sector has registered significant milestones with the generation capacity now at 2,000 MW since Karuma Hydropower Plant came onboard. 

There are more gains in an expanded distribution network spanning more than  62,000 kilometres of low and medium voltage, excluding transmission lines, among others, but consistent plucking and theft could easily rob us of this hard-earned progress and the associated benefits. 

Mr Kaujju is a communications specialist and Head of Communications at Umeme Limited