As the Inquest into ZTE’s Security Project Opens
The ongoing probe by the House of Representatives into the failed security project handled by ZTE, a Chinese technology firm, between 2010 and 2012, though a welcomed development, is coming rather late as the project has since been concluded and delivered
Having conceived the idea to fortify Nigeria with security gadgets that will detect suspicious movement of people and incessant bomb detonation, the federal government in 2010, awarded ZTE, a Chinese technology firm, a security contract worth $470 million, for the installation of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) and the supply of other security gadgets to cover Abuja and Lagos.
ZTE, which commenced the handling and execution of the project in 2010, completed it in 2012 and the project was tested and handed over to the federal government, who accepted it as duly completed, but did not put it into public use immediately.
Three years later, there was outcry from some quarters that the project, was substandard, a situation that drew the attention of the House of Representatives, who indicated interest in October 2015, to probe ZTE for the alleged failed project.
Industry stakeholders, who have been following the development since 2010 when the contract was awarded to ZTE, have argued that although the on-going probe would fish out how and why things went wrong with the security project, they have also said the probe would expose the weakness in governance and project supervision on the part of government, since it took government three years to detect that the project was poorly executed.
Contract details In 2010, the federal government, under the administration of late President Umaru Musa Yar’ Adua, awarded security project worth $470 million to ZTE, to install 2,000 digital solar-powered cameras, 1,000 each for Abuja and Lagos; 37 switch rooms; MW backbone; 37 coalition emergency response systems; 38 video conference sub-systems; 37 e-police systems; six emergency communication vehicles and 1.5 million lines for subscription.
According to ZTE Managing Director, Mr. Hao Fuqiang, the security project is made up of five components or subsystems: Global Open Trunking Architecture (GoTa) subsystem; Video Surveillance subsystem; Video Conferencing subsystem; The E-policing subsystem; and Coalition Emergency Response subsystem.
Giving the details of each subsystem, Fuqiang said the GoTa Sub-system is a dominant component of the system. It is a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) based voice and data telecommunications system with national coverage. It operates through 2Nos Mobile Switch Centre (MSC) with one each in Lagos and Abuja, 12Nos Base Station Controller (BSC), 675 Base Transceiver Station (BTS) and 21 Microwave repeaters. The GoTa system supports the deployment of 1.5 million subscriber lines.
Video Surveillance subsystem comprises of 2000 surveillance cameras with a thousand each installed in Abuja and Lagos respectively. This is the easily noticed component of the project. The application of solar solutions in this subsystem was informed by the electricity power challenges in the country and the need to ensure sustained operations of the cameras wherever they are installed. This component is only about 12 per cent of the total package of the project.
The Video Conferencing subsystem provides a platform for real time video conferencing for the Nigeria Police Force across all commands and the Force Headquarter.
The E-policing subsystem facilitates the deployment of E-policing databases, while the Coalition Emergency Response subsystem is a platform for national emergency communication using the short code of 911 for emergency and /distress calls and 912 for anonymous security information. It also empowers the security agencies to carry out coordinated response.
Fuqiang, however, maintained that all the five components were fully completed, tested and delivered to government and wondered why government should turn around to blame them for issues that emanated from non-usage of the equipment delivered to government for as long as three years.
Lawmakers’ concern Few years after the security projected was tested and handed over to government who certified it okay, the Federal House of Representatives felt it was necessary to question ZTE on the current state of the equipment, believed to be dormant and non-functional.
Worried about the dormant state of the CCTV cameras installed by ZTE in Abuja, the lawmakers noted that the absence of such critical equipment would hamper intelligence gathering that would be useful in tackling some of the security challenges currently being experienced in the country.
The lawmakers therefore set up an ad hoc committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the award and its poor execution, arguing that the aim of installing the camera was to facilitate real time communication between security agencies to enhance their capacity to ensure adequate security.
Although the probe, started since October 2015, the management of ZTE, at the weekend, insisted that they would eventually be vindicated.
ZTE’s belief ZTE, has expressed confidence that the current probe into the $470 million National Public Security Communication System (NPSCS) project will finally put to rest all public misconceptions about the project.
Fuqiang, who made the disclosure, said: “We welcome this probe because we are sure we will come out clean. We have consistently maintained that the project was fully completed and final texts completed. The Acceptance certificates are available for scrutiny. We are also proud that we built and delivered one of the most sophisticated security communication tools for the Nigerian government and Nigerian people. We believe the probe will unravel why the equipment were left unutilized and allowed to waste, years after they were delivered.”
According to Fuqiang, “Though this is the third time this project is being probed, we welcome it and will give full cooperation to the committee because it is an opportunity for us to state our own side of the story. We hope that the government will do all within its powers to resuscitate this very important project.” He explained that the former Managing Director of Nigeria Communication Satellite (NigComSat), Timasaniyu Ahmed- Rufai, had earlier told the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee investigating the award of CCTV Cameras in Abuja and Lagos, during a public session, “that the project was fully completed by ZTE but that the federal government failed to operate and maintain it.
He quoted Ahmed-Rufai as saying, “We had a team of 25 engineers that went to every location to verify different stages of the project. We issued ‘Acceptance Certificates’ after which payments were made to the contractor. There were milestones that were all carefully and professionally observed by the project implementation team.”
“As the Project Consultant, I stand by every payment that was made and every decision taken on the project. The project was completed, tested and every component was working.”
Government’s position In December 2012 when the project was completed and handed over to government, the then Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Dahiru Abubakar, acknowledged that the $470 million Public Security Communications System (NPSS) project would strengthen the capacity of the Nigeria Police in the area of crime fighting.
The development is heart-warming in view of the recent spate of insecurity in the country, the IG said during an official visit by the Chairman of the National People’s Congress (NPC) of the Peoples Republic of China, Zhang Dejiang, to the main switch centre of the NPSS. The NPSS project, which was executed by Chinese communications giant, ZTE, is a multi-faceted high-tech infrastructure for e-policing and public safety.
The police chief said there was no doubt about the importance of the multi-million dollar project to the protection of lives and property.
“We are delighted about the progress of this project, we are committed to the project and this is the first step as we will continue to improve on our infrastructure,” he said, pointing out the growing influence of China on the African continent.
Dejiang expressed delight about the project, and added that it was a demonstration of the growing relationship between Nigeria and China. In a similar vein, the former Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, also claimed that the Close Circuit TV Cameras installed in various parts of Abuja were functional. He said the facility had assisted security agencies to check crime and criminality in the FCT.
Mohammed, however, admitted that the security cameras were not installed in all parts of the city, and noted that it was the reason why security agencies were unable to prevent the April 14, 2014 blast in Nyanya, a satellite town in FCT.
He said: “The security cameras in Abuja are functional, the only problem is that they are not installed in every parts of the territory. We have 1,000 of them installed and it is not just in Abuja, but in Lagos, Port Harcourt and other cities in the country.”
The statements from government quarters about the security projects, which contradicts the current probe of the alleged failed security project, shows that either government did not employ technical expertise to ascertain the true state of the project as at when it was completed and handed over in 2012, or that the project eventually failed due to lack of use by government as currently being claimed by ZTE.