THE Uganda Police Force has ordered for 12 armoured patrol vehicles from South Africa ahead of next year’s presidential and parliamentary elections.
The decision to acquire the armoured vehicle carriers was reached by Police management early this year pending an inspection report.
Société Générale de Surveillance South Africa, part of the parent French but Geneva-registered SGS, an internationally reputed inspection firm, was contracted mid this year to carry out a pre-shipment inspection of the RG-12 armoured vehicles, popularly known as Nyala and furnish the Police management with a report.
The Inspector General of Police, Maj. Gen. Kale Kayihura, on Tuesday said, “These are things that I inherited from Lt. Gen. Katumba Wamala. He initiated the project and the purchase is an ongoing thing. Hopefully the vehicles should be in the country before we enter the active period of elections.” Asked about the cost he said, “I will need to look up those details.”
The deal for the 12 Nyalas is to cost the force US$870,000 (sh1.98b). Each unit of the four-wheel vehicles, weighing about 10.4 tonnes with a crew ranging from eight to 12, costs US$87,000 (sh165m), sources said.
The RG-12 is a multi-purpose armoured personnel carrier with anti-personnel mine, grenade, fire bomb and 5.56x 45mm ball ammunition protection that is manufactured by Land Systems OMC (a business unit of BAE Systems) of South Africa, with over 700 being in service globally in about eight countries.
Originally designed as a Police public order vehicle for both urban and rural operations, the RG-12 has been developed to be used in many roles including as a patrol vehicle, military APC, bullion carrier, bulk diamond carrier and internal security vehicle on gold and platinum mines.
SGS was contracted to carry out the inspection at the cost of US$3,420, following the approval of the five-member Police Contracts Committee headed by the deputy Inspector General of Police, Julius Odwe.
But the decision to acquire the Nyalas is said to have caused a split in the Police management, with many senior officers opposing the purchase.
