News

By David Okwembah

The police plan to acquire a state of- the-art communications system that could cost taxpayers a staggering Sh6 billion. he command and control system would link police, fire brigades, hospitals and ambulance services through the command centre in case of disasters or emergencies. It would also enhance police operations In dealing with car-jackings, movement of people and overall management of police resources, especially vehicles. The accidental or intentional jamming Of the police communication system would become a thing of the past since the new system would be able to instantly locate and indicate the status of all police handsets.

Database of criminals

The system would also provide for storage of data and statistical reports to form a database of criminals. The proposed budget of Sh6 billion is a far cry from the Sh14 billion that would have been gobbled up by shell companies the government gone ahead with the various Anglo Leasing projects four years The Kenya Police Department called for expressions of interest from firms to provide such a command and control centre that was published February 19 in local newspapers The deadline for those interested in participating in the tender is March 6, 2008,which gives them only two weeks to submit their bids in what many see as an unusually hurried process. The request stipulates that 15 subsys- tems be included in the tender.

Nairobi is to serve as the command centre headquarters with provincial police offices serving as support centres. The project is expected to be implemented in phases beginning with Nairobi and spreading throughout the rest of the country. Should the tender go through, it would be the second awarded by police after the Anglo Leasing scandal blew up in April 2004. The only other contract awarded by police since then was for the Sh800 million overhaul of four second-hand Russian helicopters. Should the tender go according to plan, it could be awarded by May and the system installed by July.

The new system would upgrade the current analogue communications network to a digital one. The existing backbone system was set up by the British through the Team Simoco (initially called Philips Radio Communication Systems) project at a cost of more than Sh3 billion. But Team Simoco's contract was terminated ahead of time when the Narc government came to power and before the police could migrate to a digital system which was to be the final phase of the Team Simoco project. In the new tender, the police want a system that will give them secured handsets which, unlike their current equipment, cannot be intercepted by criminals or can be removed from the system if they fall into the wrong hands.

Futile Attempts

In the past two years police have made futile attempts to upgrade their handsets to the Tetra system for Nairobi alone through funds provided by the Governance, Justice, Law and Order Sector (GJLOS) reforms. In the Tetra system, which was estimated to cost about Sh500 million, the police handsets could have been used both as radios and telephones. Sources familiar with the police communications system told the Sunday Nation that the new one police are eyeing was a comprehensive unit that would include various parts.

Among the additions police want included in the new system is closed circuit television (CCIV), which was part of one of the Anglo Leasing projects the government cancelled in 2004 after allegations of extensive corruption. The CCIV component was part of the E-Cop project which would have cost taxpayers Sh5billion. The command and control system will be supplemented by subsystems like the Geographic Information System (GIS), Computer Aided Dispatch System (CADS),Wireless Digital Communication Network (WDCN) and Automatic Vehicle Location System (AVLS). The Nairobi City Council is already using the GIS, a modern computer system, in the collection of rates. Police spokesman Eric Kiraithe said police were looking for a system to provide real time communication that could be picked up throughout the country.