Escom loses K160m to vandals

Over K160 million was lost to vandalism and theft of electricity infrastructure last year alone, the Electricity Supply Commission of Malawi (Escom) has said.

Speaking during the official opening of the sensitisation workshop on theft and vandalism of Escom infrastructure on Monday in Mangochi, the power supplier’s board member Endrinna Kayambazinthu said the vandalism affects expansion of the network.

“The money is used to replace stolen or vandalised infrastructure instead of being used to expand the network. Furthermore, the corporation loses a lot of revenue due to failure to supply power arising from vandalism.

“It is our desire to increase the rate of access to electricity in the country which is at nine percent of the population. However, we are likely to achieve very little if this challenge is not addressed,” said Kayambazinthu.

Chief Justice Anastasia Msosa, giving a key note address to the workshop that sought to raise awareness on the malpractice, said the Judiciary’s mission is to provide independent and impartial judicial services that are efficient and that earn the respect and trust and confidence of society.

“There has been an outcry from Escom concerning theft and vandalism of electricity installation equipment. The major concern has been decisions on verdict and sentences mete out by the courts once suspects are brought before them. Whereas it is expected for the court to be fair and just, it is expected of the prosecutors to bring all relevant information before the court. Such information can only be available if properly gathered by the investigator.

“As an impartial arbiter the court can not be expected to fill in the gaps left by the prosecutor or investigator. It is therefore unthinkable to ignore the importance of the role that the public prosecutors and investigators play in the administration of criminal justice,” said Msosa.

Minister of Energy Ibrahim Matola said it was sad that some sections of the society behave in unpatriotic, irresponsible and selfish manner.

“[Some people] deliberately damage and destroy the same infrastructure that is critical to our sustained economic growth. We find these actions to be unacceptable, at the very least, and even an act of economic sabotage at worst. Such actions do not only derail our plans to eradicate poverty in Malawi through economic growth and job creation, they also force us to transfer our resources and energies from development into maintenance,” said Matola.

The two day workshop included the Director of Public Prosecutions, Bruno Kalemba, registrars from the High Court and Supreme Court, magistrates, officials from Malawi Bureau of Standards and police officers from the Southern Region.

Escom will also organise similar workshops for the Central and Northern Regions.