With a recent rise in cases to do with broad-day light robberies, street attacks by thugs on major roads and streets in Kampala, security agencies have urged members of the public to take up their civic duty to prevent crime by employing their defensive skills.
Among the skills recommended by security is defensive driving skills to knock down robbers and other attackers in action.
Security further notes that it came to this conclusion after reviewing various footage in which Indian and Chinese nationals were attacked with bystanders simply watching on.
Police spokesperson Fred Enanga said that in the various footage, there are many other members of the public such as riders on bodabodas and cars but nobody came to the rescue of the victims.
“In the various pieces of footage, we have been studying which were captured along Mawanda road, Bugolobi and Kololo where a diplomat was robbed, you could see other motorists just driving past and other bystanders just watching not even coming to rescue the victims,” he noted.
It is on this note that Enanga urged the public to be more defensive and that as civilians they have a civic duty to prevent, stop and fight crime.
“Those who have defensive driving skills on motorcycles and vehicles need to use them to crash against violent attackers on bodabodas, not with the intent of killing but injuring them so they become defenseless,” he said.
“This is a message that our leadership has come up with today. These brave first responders shall be considered and protected under the legal provision of self-defense and defense of another person. So, arrangements have been put in place to offer support to brave and courageous members of the public who encounter such criminals and save such people from injury, “he added.
Nevertheless, the flying squad unit has intensified its operations on bodaboda gangs, actively involved in violent attacks against pedestrians and victims on motorcycles in Kampala.