JOHANNESBURG - Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola says the collection of scrap metal should be centralised.
He's also calling on local authorities to come up with new ideas to tackle cable theft.
The distribution of electricity and railway lines have been crippled by such theft.
"The amount of theft is quite problematic," he said.
"What we would recommend is that this export of materials, we should go back to the drawing board and find some stringent policy on the export of copper."