The Member of Parliament for Fyzabad, Dr Lackram Bodoe MP, has condemned in the strongest terms, the recent acts of vandalism and sabotage at two national utilities, which left thousands with either a water or an electricity supply.
“As the Member of Parliament, I strongly condemn the acts of vandalism and sabotage at the WASA Booster Station in Fyzabad, and the cutting down of the T&TEC pole connected to the station,” the MP wrote in his statement. “These acts of violence, perpetrated on public property, affected the lives of over 40,000 people and caused further hardships on citizens already faced with ongoing water woes in the constituency, and traumatized by rising crimes in our country.”
In an official statement issued today, the Fyzabad MP called on Government to act quickly to stem this latest criminal wave, which seems to be targeting public property.
“The police must be given the resources to effectively treat with all crime, including crimes of this nature,” he said. “I call upon WASA and T&TEC to do more to protect their plants and installations—all of which are paid for by taxpayers.”
Dr. Lackram Bodoe also believes the time has come to stop the export of copper, as a disincentive to the criminals carrying out their destructive acts.
“I also add my voice to the call to temporarily suspend the export of copper until this situation is adequately dealt with. TSTT, another state enterprise, also has been victim to vandalism and theft of its copper cables and this has further exacerbated an already bad situation where citizens cannot contact the police, fire services, ambulance, and other important public offices when they need to, because landlines are non-functional due to these criminal acts,” the Fyzabad MP pointed out.
WASA, TSTT and T&TEC have already indicated they will be stepping up their security protocols to protect their assets, and reduce further acts of sabotage and vandalism.