Residents putting up under electricity cables ordered to vacate

Residents of Narok County who have built houses under the electricity transmission cables should vacate immediately before the government forcefully moves them, Narok County Commissioner Isaac Masinde has said.

Masinde said those who have built houses under the cables risk suffering huge losses in case the cables have a problem.

He called on chiefs to be vigilant to ensure the directive was enforced saying prevention is better than cure.

“No person will be allowed to build a structure under the cables and those who have already built should vacate immediately as they risk their lives when the cables are interfered with,” he said

The county commissioner also sounded a warning to those who vandalize the electricity system saying their days were numbered.

“We are coming for those with a habit of vandalizing the transformers to steal fuel and scrap metals. We will not allow a few people to sabotage the economy of this county because of their selfish interests,” said Masinde.

He reminded residents that the scrap metal business remained illegal in the county after President Uhuru Kenyatta outlawed it last month.

“The decision was informed by the great losses the energy sector faced because of rampant vandalization of electrical cables. This is why I am directing the chiefs and their assistants to be vigilant to arrest anyone dealing with scrap metal business,” he said.

Masinde reiterated that electricity benefited everyone in different ways observing our daily businesses are driven by the energy we get from electricity.

“Most of the medicine in hospitals is stored under low temperatures powered by electricity, the computers used in the administration have to be charged, your mobile phone needs to be charged; in other words, we all need electricity in our normal lives,” he observed.

Last month, the president banned exports and dealings in scrap metal after a country-wide blackout that affected a major economic activity.

The blackout was caused by the vandalism of towers on the transmission lines where people intentionally unbolted some of the transmission lines.

The ban is said to have helped reduce the vandalism of critical infrastructure in various parts of the country.