Police Field Force Unit personnel patrol a Kampala suburb recently. Photo by.

KAMPALA
The police leadership has relocated the Field Force Unit headquarters from Naguru-Ntinda Police Barracks in Kampala to Olilim Police Training School in Katakwi District, affecting 10,000 personnel.
Police yesterday said the relocation of the officers is to pave way for the redevelopment of the city barracks which is expected to commence by March 2012. The Field Force Unit (FFU) was formed from the Anti-Stock Theft Unit and Mobile Police Patrol Unit.
A police radio message sent to different units and also pinned on the police headquarters notice board last week indicated that the officers must leave immediately and that houses must be handed over to the Police Directorate of Engineering and Logistics. But the affected officers told Daily Monitor that the new location has a shortage of schools, health and accommodation facilities for their families.
“We know that we are in a Force and orders are not questioned but you can’t take someone and his or her family to a place where you haven’t established accommodation and public facilities,” an officer, who preferred anonymity for fear of reprisal, said.
According to the message, only FFU officers, who are around 3,000 in number, operating in Kampala will be allowed to stay on the 58.9-hectare Naguru-Ntinda Barracks for a while. Late last month, police started the process of Public-Private Partnership to redevelop all police barracks in the Kampala Metropolitan Police Area which will also see officers relocated out of the city centre.
Housing project
Three consortiums, including Akright Properties, Ahadi Consortium, and Fangda International Company who showed interest are undergoing evaluation for the redevelopment of the Kampala Metropolitan Police barracks.
At least 7,300 housing units are expected to be constructed for the police from the project. However, the police are short of over 30,000 housing units. According to the plan, the police will share the constructed facilities with the developers and the facilities will revert to police after 25 years.
Police spokesman Asuman Mugenyi, in an interview yesterday, said there is no reason to panic because there are enough government schools and other facilities in Olilim.
“There are government facilities like schools and health centres in Olilim. In fact, it is only the headquarters of FFU and coordination, command and control that will be relocated,” Mr Mugenyi said.
Daily Monitor could not establish the number of public schools and health centres in Olilim in which the officers will take their children and seek social amenities.
abagala@ug.nationmedia.com