[size=14pt]N70.5bn security communication project suffers setback[/size]
Written by Idowu Samuel, Abuja
Sunday, 10 October 2010

Efforts by China to mount a security communication network in Nigeria through a $470 million (N70.5 billion) contract designed for that purpose have started suffering a huge setback following a spy alert made to the government on the project.

This is coming amid apprehension across the country on the security status of Nigeria following sudden bomb blasts which rocked Abuja on October 1, day of Nigeria's Independence Anniversary and over which some arrests had been made.

Officials of government hinted Sunday Tribune that the $470 million project would have kicked off at the instance of the Chinese government through its Communication Agency, ZTE, but for the presidency's resolve to thoroughly investigate all security equipment to be installed on the streets of Nigeria and on government offices, to be sure that none contained 'spyware' as alleged.

The process of award of contract for project, it was learnt, had reached an advanced stage, the Chinese and Nigerian governments having earlier signed the required Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the execution.

As explained, the Security Communication Network Project could serve as an avenue for foreign countries to spy on Nigeria and obtain detailed information about the country in the event that spyware could be built into any equipment to be shipped into the country and which would be mounted in strategic locations and security offices in the country, in line with the project design.

As designed, the ZTE proposed project involves building of National Public Security Communication System based on GoTa (Global Open Trunking Architecture), a technology said to be the latest in digital trunking system.

According to ZTE, the project became imperative for Nigeria on the basis that it was about entering into election year in which case it should hold the issue of security as top priority, hence the need for mounting of security gadgets on Nigerian highways, airports, sea ports, government offices and strategic police formations across the country.

Sunday Tribune investigations revealed that ZTE had earlier convinced the government about the suitability of the project for addressing Nigeria's security challenges with a proposal that the GoTa system would cover capital cities of 36 states in Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The GoTa system involves wireless video surveillance services, and which include the building of six surveillance centres in 12 zones of the federation with 2000 wireless digital cameras.

The Chinese telecommunication company had argued that it would provide 100,000 terminals, including GoTa terminal, fixed wireless terminal, data card and normal handsets, training of more than 50 police officers and more than 30 engineers to operate the system, as part of the project.

The Nigeria Police, according to ZTE, will be the main beneficiary of the massive security project which is meant to launch e-police system in the country. The e-police system involves e-mail/push mail system in which case members of staff of the Nigerian Police would be receiving and sending emails from any location in the country, using email/push mail system and mobile mail system for improvement of their day to day activities.

http://www.tribune.com.ng/sun/index.php/news/2240-n705bn-security-communication-project-suffers-setback

This is the exact sort of project needed to bring our primitive disgrace of a stick carrying police force to modernity. I love the way this govt is attempting to digitalise everything, from calculations of how much each LG and state makes to the security communications backbone in this thread. Within a few years, Nigeria would have transformed from a place where data is anathema, to one where every pin can be accounted for.

Lets hope they sort any spy issues on time and effectively. The only real way to ensure that is to make it a point that Nigerians are trained to take over every single aspect of its maintainance from immediately it takes off.