Durban – Seven police stations in KwaZulu-Natal have inadequate alternative measures for the supply of electricity during load shedding.
This was revealed when in a written parliamentary question and reply that National Freedom Party leader in Parliament, Ahmed Munzoor Shaik Emam, asked Police Minister Bheki Cele.
He asked what the total number of police stations in KZN and the Western Cape was that didn’t have adequate alternative measures put in place for the supply of electricity during load shedding.
Cele said: “A total of seven police stations in KwaZulu-Natal don’t have adequate alternative measures put in place for the supply of electricity during load shedding.
“All police stations in Western Cape have adequate alternative measures put in place for the supply of electricity during load shedding.”
Shaik Emam also asked Cele what the reasons were that generators provided to the specified police stations weren’t operational and what measures had been put in place to rectify the issue.
Cele said the reasons generators weren’t operational were that these generators get damaged because of the frequency of their usage, sometimes for longer hours (depending on the frequency of load shedding).
Alternators are damaged, especially when generators regularly run for lengthy periods depending on the stage of load shedding. Some of these generators are old and need replacement. Various parts of the generators are becoming unserviceable.
“The Department of Public Works has lengthy procurement processes for the repairs/servicing of generators, where some of the projects registered in 2019 for the replacement of generators are still under planning and design and not yet executed,” Cele said.
He said that for non-devolved stations, the National Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (NDPWI) have contractors that repair and service generators. If it cannot be repaired immediately, the contractor provides a back-up smaller generator.
Cele said that for devolved stations, some are still on a maintenance plan, some on a service contract and the rest are maintained via the South African Police Service (SAPS) day-to-day maintenance procedures.
“The KwaZulu-Natal province has identified stations in need of generators, replacements to be attended to as intervention projects. SAPS has sought approval from the NDPWI for SAPS to replace the generator units under SAPS delegation with the standby power supply,” he added.
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