Security standards can counter terrorism

The attitude of the average Kenyan towards personal security and safety has changed significantly in the past two years.

The reality of the situation demands that we maintain vigilance and be more concerned about our surroundings. Unfortunately, one sometimes gets concerned at the degree of ignorance and negligence among security operators around the country.

A visit to some of the public places reveals poor security services. The armies of security guards that are hired to guard these places are in most cases untrained and, therefore, have no idea how to handle emergencies.

Even at the national level, the official authorities have yet to get their act together. From past and recent experience, it is doubtful that the people in charge of national security have a coherent plan for response and action in place to deal with a crisis involving mass casualties like the recurrent terrorist attacks in Kenya.

One would expect by now a solid operational framework of homeland security and response mechanisms ready to avert crises like the Garissa attack and ensure quick recovery in the wake of large-scale emergencies. Disaster operation and resilience is a preserve of the internal security docket.

Vital security measures are wide-ranging in scope — from operations management and intelligence to preventive/innovative services — and all of these facets of security and crisis management require meticulous coordination.

TO BE RELIED ON

Establishment of institutions such as the national emergency response organisation, regulatory and policy regimes, and holistic change management initiatives become imperative requirements if we are to enhance and strengthen the capacity of the institutions charged with the responsibilities of security operations and disaster management.

They are needed to achieve a sense of order under a unified command and coordination at the national level. It is impossible to place and coordinate an incident command with fragmented security resources. In Kenya all these things are either completely missing or too limited to be relied upon.

Obviously, the government has invested resources to improve security for Kenyans, but these resources have ended up boosting non-productive measures, partly due to the poor approaches adopted or lack of a focused strategy to deal with security challenges facing the nation. Take, for example, the planned building of a wall at the Kenya/Somalia border. The idea is obviously hurried and ill-advised.

The wall is just another unnecessary drain on the taxpayers’ money because it will not stop terrorists coming to Kenya. Terrorism is asymmetrical; it can manifest internally and can come from any direction, and without notice.

You will be surprised that it is the little things (usually ignored) that could make a difference in preventing security breaches. Apparently, that campus lacked basic physical security measures, including contingency plans for coordinated evacuation and quick response.

The government is duty-bound to set and enforce minimum operating security standards for all areas and places where threat levels and risks are high. The leaders of national security must work overtime to devise plans to permanently defeat the Al-Shabaab threat.

Mr Mohamed Wato is a retired army major who works and lives in New York, USA. [email protected]