A scandal is brewing in Kazakhstan around the legality of fines for traffic violations recorded by CCTV cameras.
Deputy Chairman of the Committee for Technical Regulation and Metrology, Bauyrzhan Kassymov, stated that there were serious violations in the verification procedure of hardware and software systems (HSS).
According to him, in 2024, regional departments did not carry out mandatory checks of video recording cameras.
Moreover, many laboratories responsible for equipment verification violated the verification procedures. Their licences were suspended for six months.
Only in Astana, 48 administrative protocols were recorded totalling 8.3 million tenge.
Of particular concern is the fact that the Committee for Technical Regulation does not have information about which specific cameras are operating without proper certificates, which casts doubt on the legality of all fines issued using unchecked equipment.
The situation is compounded by the history of problems with one of the most common public and road safety systems, 'Sergek'.
In January last year, numerous violations in the installation of cameras were uncovered in the Kostanay region. The company 'Korkem Telecom', responsible for implementing the Sergek system, turned out to not meet legal and technical requirements, lacked exclusive rights to the software, and did not have the necessary certificates.
Furthermore, serious financial violations were discovered in the project, including unjustified compensation of costs amounting to 1.76 billion tenge.
Although the Akim of the Kostanay Region, Kumar Aksakalov, acknowledged the violations and promised not to make payments until all problems were resolved, the situation remains tense.
At the same time, the conflict in the East Kazakhstan Region remains unresolved, where Sergek Group refuted the claims of Akim Yermek Kosherbayev about non-functioning cameras left without software after the termination of a public-private partnership (PPP).
As for the future of the Sergek system, we can assume several scenarios for how events might unfold.
Most likely, the company will have to carry out a large-scale effort to bring all documentation into compliance with legal requirements and obtain the necessary certificates. Against the backdrop of violations during HSS verification, there may be increased state control over the activities of private companies in the field of video recording of traffic violations.
For now, drivers are advised to carefully check the legality of any fines they receive by requesting information about camera verification in penalty notices.
The situation requires a speedy resolution, as it affects the rights of millions of Kazakh car owners and calls into question the effectiveness of the existing traffic enforcement system.
Recall that last June, the editorial team of FBRK provided a detailed account of the Intelligent Road Traffic Control System (IRTSCS) project, which was being jointly developed by Freedom Telecom and Sergek Group.
We also analysed the Sergek public and road safety intelligent system project, which has been the subject of numerous disputes regarding the safety and effectiveness of the system throughout its entire operational period.