Ministers Katumba, Otafiire applaud Police CCTVs in crime fight

Two senior Government officials have commended Police for the nationwide Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) camera network, saying it has improved the fight against crime.

Water and Environment Minister Maj. Gen. (rtd) Kahinda Otafiire and his counterpart, Public Service Minister Gen. (Rtd) Katumba Wamala, made the remarks today, October 13, 2026, while appearing before Members of Parliament (MPs) on the Physical Infrastructure Committee chaired by Mwine Mpaka Rwamirama (Mbarara City South Division).

The ministers were appearing before MPs over matters related to a $257m (about Sh970.69b) deal that the Government signed with Joint Stock Global Security Limited five years ago to design and install traceable digital number plates.

Katumba said that while he was unsure whether the two systems were integrated at the moment, Police's CCTV camera network, which uses technology supplied by China's Huawei, had helped apprehend the culprits behind his attempted assassination.

It should be noted that in June 2021, Katumba, who was then Works and Transport Minister, was ambushed by four gunmen riding on motorcycles with concealed number plates along Kisotta Road in Ntinda, a Kampala suburb.

The assailants sprayed his official vehicle with 56 bullets, during which Katumba's daughter Brenda Nantongo was killed. The attack left Katumba nursing bullet wounds.

Katumba told MPs that CCTV footage had helped to identify those behind the attack, who are now facing trial in court.

"The system which Police is using works because if it wasn't, I wouldn't have gone even to be in court to look at the fellows who nearly took my life. I am not sure whether the introduction of Global Security added another security. But the Police system is working, and I am a beneficiary of that. I don't know how many of you have faced a gunman in a town, not even on a battlefield, and we were able to trace those fellows who nearly took my life," Katumba added.

On the other hand, Otafiire, who had earlier slammed the Russian digital number plate contractor, acknowledged that Police's Huawei-powered CCTV camera network had done a commendable job, despite some challenges.

Mwine Mpaka, Committee chairperson

"The camera system, its problems notwithstanding, works. The system of the Police works and, for your information, the Police had developed a system for instant traffic penalties, which was interfered with. But where the Police have installed cameras by Huawei, those are functional. Of course, some of them are not working, but that is a technical problem," Otafiire stated.

Otafiire argued that the same cannot be said about the digital number plates deal, which he claimed to have opposed from the inception but was overpowered.

"If you want to ask me whether this Intelligent Transport Monitoring System (ITMS) added any value, I am very hesitant to answer in the positive. I am really very reluctant; I don't know whether they have improved. But as far as I am concerned, when I was Minister of Internal Affairs, it was useless. That's my honest view. The thing was useless," Otafiire stated.

He added: "My quarrel was: if (businessman Gordon) Wavamuno, a Ugandan, was making number plates and employing our people, why did we abandon him and others who were making number plates here to go and import number plates when they could be made here and employ our people?"

However, responding to concerns over local number plate manufacturers, Commissioner for Transport Regulation and Safety Winstone Katushabe argued that the transition was necessary to eliminate cases of number plate duplication, which were common under the old system.