Social Media Posts about Entebbe Airport Staff Misconduct

The Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control (DCIC) acknowledges complaints and allegations from various sources that have been trending on Social Media regarding mistreatment and extortion by staff of different agencies at Entebbe International Airport. We have taken keen interest in accusations aimed at particularly Immigration Staff and are already taking measures to have them addressed justly and swiftly. We also however acknowledge that some of these allegations are quite sensational, some outright defamatory in nature and others merely memes and generalised wild accusations unworthy of any attention.

The public needs to know that the Airport has a multiplicity of agencies that number over ten with Immigration being one of them. Our mandate as Immigration at the Airport is to ensure the legal entry and exit of all Travelers. We screen travelers and their travel documents, issue entry visas where applicable and stamps to travelers coming into the country and exit those leaving.  Any other activities are outside our scope of duty and have relevant agencies that handle them.

This Statement is purely informing the public about measures the Directorate has been implementing and continues to implement to stamp out all acts of misconduct including soliciting bribes among others that could disorient travelers or make them miss their flights for unjustifiable reasons within the scope of our mandate.

The Directorate’s Management alongside sister agencies held a meeting with the Immigration Staff at the Airport on Friday, 20th January 2023 and some of the measures we came up with include;

1. All Immigration Staff must be in full Uniform complete with names embroidered on the Shirts. The Immigration uniform is made up of;

1. A white Shirt and forest green trousers for men
2. A white shirt and forest green skirt for ladies
3. PIPs depending on Rank and Title with three starts and one with a green background for Immigration Officers and Assistants respectively who form the bulk of staff deployed at the Airport.
4. Senior Immigration Officers’ pips have the logo of the Directorate and one star.

2. Immigration staff will not use phones while at work
3. All Immigration staff must have access cards issued by the Civil Aviation Authority that detail the holder’s particulars.
4. We have deployed more senior officers to boost supervision of our staff and be readily available to listen to complaints

To avoid being susceptible to corrupt tendencies and misconduct, we urge all travelers to follow the guidelines set by the Civil Aviation Authority such as arriving three hours before boarding time so as to get the boarding passes in time. This grants one enough time to undergo all processes in a timely manner while denying fraudsters, conmen and unprofessional staff opportunities of taking advantage of the seemingly desperate situation to solicit bribes among other unprofessional conduct. It equally gives a traveler enough time to lodge a complaint and see justice served before boarding

We most importantly urge travelers not to offer bribes to any of our staff and to immediately report any misconduct to the nearest authority or supervisor. We do not condone any misconduct on the part of our staff. Swift and just disciplinary action is always taken once any of our staff, with evidence is found guilty of any misconduct. Any member of the public who willingly bribes (corrupts) an officer for whatever reason also commits a crime.

It is in this spirit that we call upon all travelers with complaints about Immigration Staff backed up by evidence such as dates of travel, and flight numbers among others to come to us with these complaints. You can be very certain that once verified, action will be taken.

We further urge the public that except unless with evidence, to avoid sensationalism and defamatory posts as this is not only wrong but could also lead to legal action being taken against them by the affected groups or people.

We look forward to continued improvement in our services and utmost professionalism as we seamlessly facilitate travelers on our way to becoming the model of excellence in Immigration Service Delivery.