Plagued by theft and vandalism, the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality plans to allocate R2.4m this financial year to complete the fencing of the city’s cable yard — a project launched last year to address serious safety risks at the facility.
The cable yard is located at the metro’s supply chain management (SCM) sub-directorate premises on the corner of Harrower Road and Buxton Avenue.
The item from the budget and treasury directorate is expected to be tabled at Tuesday’s council meeting, when councillors will be asked to approve the 2025/2026 adjustment budget.
In the 2024/2025 financial year, the city earmarked R2.5m for the fencing of the cable yard, but only R70,000 worth of work was invoiced by the contractor.
“The service provider that was procured had to prepare itself for the installation of the required fence for safeguarding the assets of the municipality,” a report on the item reads.
“It is unfortunate that the actual work commenced towards the end of the financial year [2024/2025] in question, resulting in the inability to complete the project.
“[This] resulted in the remaining unspent amount of R2.4m, which must be incorporated in the 2025/2026 capital budget for the continuation of the project due to its urgency.
“It should be noted that the funding source linked to this capital project is internal and is therefore not subject to the conditional grant roll-over process.”
The report states that no other invoices are due for payment in the 2024/2025 financial year in relation to the fencing project.
The incorporation of the funds to complete the project became necessary due to ongoing risks at the cable yard, where frequent incidents of theft and vandalism have been reported.
“It required that the security measures in the place be attended to so that the assets of the municipality can be adequately safeguarded.”
An urgent deviation in line with regulations was applied for and approved by former acting city manager Ted Pillay.
Budget and treasury political head Khanya Ngqisha said the broken perimeter fence posed a serious security risk as it allowed criminals easy access to the cable yard.
“This vulnerability has previously resulted in theft and vandalism of municipal assets, including copper cables,” Ngqisha said.
“In fact, during one such incident last year, one of the suspects was fatally shot on the premises while attempting to steal copper.
“The funds allocated for the repair of the perimeter fence were not spent in the previous financial year due to delays in the processes and procurement cycle.”
Ngqisha said the project had since been prioritised for implementation in the current financial year to strengthen security and protect municipal infrastructure.
The Herald