Famous Makerere University academician Dr. Stella Nyanzi has this evening slapped Uganda security officials with strong criticism following city moguls Frank Gashumba’s arrest.
In a deeply elaborated Facebook post, Nyanzi said security operatives displaying information of a citizen holding more than one passports is a question that has to be directed to government not an individual as detailed below.
“What is the value of a Ugandan passport? How much more devaluation can our cherished national document take? Who is to blame when CMI publicly parades a handcuffed Frank Gashumba before media cameras and shames him for having many passports bearing different names for the same man?” she said.
Did Gashumba print these different passports himself? Doesn’t the Passport Office under the Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control in the Ministry of Internal Affairs have checks and balances against fraudsters acquiring fake passports? Given Gashumba’s widespread popularity among particular wanna-be circles in Uganda, how come he was issued multiple passports under false names? Given the rigorous process of proving one’s ancestry, residence and belonging within Uganda, how come Gashumba was variously let off the hook and allowed to obtain these varied passports? Shouldn’t the entire Ministry of Internal Affairs be handcuffed along with Frank Gashumba?
If Gashumba can have multiple passports using fraudulent aliases, what does it mean for the rest of us who carry Ugandan passports? We have fake bank notes, fake academic transcripts, fake leaders, fake hair, fake hips, fake accents, fake job contracts, fake pay-rolls with ghost workers, and now fake passports! How much more dilution and corruption can Ugandanness suffer?
