[kictanet] Have we failed the nation yet again?

[Matunda Nyanchama]

Friends
 
First of all sincere condolences to that lost loved ones, friends and others in  this tragedy. We remember them, and indeed all Kenyans, in prayers.
 
Once the dust settles, as a country we need to do a complete assessment of our emergency preparedness and understand what it takes to (a) forestall/foil such schemes as materialized at Westgate Mall; (b) respond to such tragedies when they happen and (c) how we learn from such experiences (unpalatable as they are). The idea is to minimize loss & damage: of life, limb, material, time, etc.
 
Emergency preparedness needs plenty of cross-agency cooperation (intelligence gathering, threat assessment, coordinated response plans, etc.), awareness and integrated training/exercises (call them testing) to test the efficacy of any plans.
 
It would be interesting to see emergency plans (I am sure there is one pertaining to fire and evacuation) of the mall itself, when it was drawn up and how often it is tested; and indeed, how coordinated (with state security, health, fire, etc. agencies) the plan is. It would be interesting to see individual business continuity plans for the mall and the businesses therein and how well integrated these plans are
 
Such emergency plans need a lot of information gathering (yes, including what most Americans protest perpetually about: govt "spying" on them), analysis and informed decisions on threat levels and associated weight of response. (BTW: most people prefer some loss of liberty if that can be for the common good, such as averting danger.)
 
Food for thought. For now, though, let's grieve and resolve to act, resolutely.
 
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Matunda Nyanchama, PhD, CISSP; mnyanchama at aganoconsulting.com
Agano Consulting Inc.;  http://www.aganoconsulting.com/; Twitter: nmatunda;  Skype: okiambe
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