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The Internal Affairs Ministry has cautioned foreign nationals against acquiring Ugandan passports fraudulentlyduring a weekly security press briefing at Naguru Police Headquarters on Monday, September 4, 2023.

During a weekly security news briefing at Naguru Police Headquarters on Monday, September 4, 2023, the Internal Affairs Ministry warned foreign nationals against obtaining Ugandan passports falsely.

Simon Mundeyi, the spokesperson for the Internal Affairs Ministry, said that a section of foreigners is using fraudulent means to acquire passports.

He noted that immigration has also recorded a surge in demand for Ugandan passports and attributed it to international recognition.

“Some of these individuals are going as far as hiring people at a fee of $2 million to pose as their parents in an attempt to dishonestly obtain Ugandan passports; we warn such persons that they will be arrested and prosecuted,” said Mundeyi.

Mundeyi noted that citizens from countries that have faced passport restrictions or been blacklisted for some criminal reasons in certain nations have found ways to acquire Ugandan passports for use.

“Such persons have found ways of living here temporarily and eventually crafted ways of applying for Ugandan passports; last week, a group of Congolese nationals were arrested for trying to fraudulently acquire passports,” said Mundeyi.

He explained that the group hired Ugandans to pretend as their relatives before the passport office but noted these were busted.

“They hired people to work as their parents and family members and come in a group. The Congolese pretended to be Ugandans who had not grown up from here but when we quizzed the hired family members, the spoke the truth. On further scrutiny, we found out that these Congolese don’t know a thing about Uganda.”

He noted that the group that pretended as the family members of the Congolese had each been paid between shs1 million and shs2 million to stand as parents.

Mundeyi said the group has been arrested and will soon be arraigned in courts of law.

“The Congolese were in possession of national ID cards that they got fraudulently. They will all be arraigned before courts of law.”

In the past, foreigners especially from Nigeria have been trying to acquire Ugandan passports to use them in their business of drug trafficking, to countries like China where their countries’ passports were blacklisted.

The whole group, their ‘hired ‘parents, and Congolese who were in possession of national ID cards were arrested and will be arraigned in court to face legal action.