Police ICT director hands over to man he replaced
Combo: Yusuf Ssewanyana (L) and Felix Baryamwisaki (R). PHOTOS/ FILE
What you need to know:
- Mr Yusuf Ssewanyana was the brain behind the police CCTV camera project, starting from the first phase.
Inspector General of Police Martins Okoth-Ochola has removed the acting director of the Police ICT Directorate days after Parliament approved a Shs187b supplementary budget for the third phase of the CCTV cameras project.
Mr Yusuf Ssewanyana, who has been the acting ICT director since 2021, has been replaced by Mr Felix Baryamwisaki.
Mr Ssewanyana had replaced Mr Baryamwisaki.
The transfer comes days after Parliament approved a supplementary budget worth Shs187b to allow the police commence the third phase of the CCTV camera project.
A police source said the message from the police headquarters directed Mr Ssewanyana to hand over office to the incoming officer immediately. Mr Ssewanyana was the brain behind the police CCTV camera project, starting from the first phase during the time when Uganda hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to the recent one installed by a Chinese firm.
Daily Monitor couldn’t confirm the transfer from police spokesperson Fred Enanga since he said he couldn’t comment on what he described as the Force’s internal matters.
In the third phase, the police will procure more than 5,000 CCTV cameras that will be installed in Kampala Metropolitan Area.
Last week, there was a heated debate in Parliament as government sought a supplementary budget for the third phase of CCTV cameras.
Members of Parliament questioned the effectiveness of the CCTV cameras that the police had procured, claiming that many have broken down after a short time.
But during the meeting between the police leadership and the members of Parliament on the Defence and Internal Affairs Committee, Mr Ssewanyana said the CCTV cameras on many roads were affected by dust, rain, power cuts and constant cable cuts by construction companies.
He said he needed more than Shs26b to carry out the repair. Last year, a Daily Monitor investigation revealed that for four in every 10 CCTV cameras needed to be replaced.
In total, 1,776 of the 5,153 cameras installed countrywide under the CCTV surveillance camera network project superintended by police have malfunctioned, among other reasons, due to optic fibre cuts during road or utility works, the story indicated.
