KCCA Urges the Public To Be More Vigilant After Wave of Kidnaps, Murders

In the light of increased crime, Kampala Capital City Authority has come up with guidelines for safety.

The statement advised the public to reveal their movements to their close relatives and loved ones especially appointments outside your working environments.

- The statement further advised parents and guardians to their children’s schools and authorize  specific people  to collect and drop off their children.

Parents are advised to desist from sending their children to shops or places of worship unaccompanied as this could provide an opportunity for possible kidnaps.

The statement further advised that in the event of a kidnap, a report to the authorities should be made immediately and minimum information on the investigations shared.

While it’s sometimes unavoidable to leave work late, use of a cab or a motorcycle should be used to avoid possible attacks.

Generally as individuals loose talk should be avoided especially on matters such as business plans, travel and money talk. The individuals employed to do casual labor within homes should be closely monitored to avoid exploitation of loopholes by the criminal minds that would harm close relatives.

Sharing of personal information with acquaintances can lead to infiltration of your safety and lifestyle especially information shared by Maids, security guards, shamba boys.

Home security should be improved both physically and personal ; Key locks; upon entering a house, the first area of security interest should be in key locks. It is advisable to change them.

Utility providers and vendors: wrong elements tend to approach our areas of residence as utility providers (UMEME, DSTV) or vendors. Under such circumstances, they aim at infiltrating our residences through the people we live with.

- Curiosity at home: Teach your home people basic security skills. For instance. Every time a stranger comes to your premises, the first contact person with that stranger should take note of the reg. number plate of the motor vehicle, cycle or means of transport. Secondly, he/she should call you the house holder to consult you on the details of interaction if the stranger makes any suggestions.

Workers’ Profile: It is imperative that upon getting a worker/ house maid, he/she is subjected criminal background check. The worker will be issued a certificate of good conduct if found without a criminal history. These workers handle our food, access our house locks, come across our personal details but inevitably interact with the world outside us. They are paid the least attention whereas potentially they pose the gravest danger if they chose to.

 Cyber crime

- Vital communications of financial or administrative kind should not be communicated by social media platforms. The most frequently harked platform of recent has been messenger and Facebook.

- Through your social media posting criminals establish your current locations (village trips, business trips and entertainment choices). It is from this data that they hatch plans against you.

4) Private Business Transactions

- It is advisable to always make big sums transactions within banks (payments and receipt of large sums).

- Secondly, in banks, some of the clients therein are in a lookout for persons walking out with large sums.

- In purchase of assets such as real estate, Criminals initiate sale transactions and midway they terminate them. Knowing that you have the money to purchase the said property, they resort to ways of dispossessing you of that money. The process of robbing could result into your loss of life.

- For those who run private business firms, criminal minded employers tend to interest themselves into workers’ payment patterns/ schedules. This information is passed on to criminals who in the end waylay cashiers with bulk cash.