By Robert Segawa
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has destroyed 158,000 older version passport booklets, valued at over Shs 3 billion, following the expiration of these documents in the wake of the transition to the new e-passports.
Speaking at a press briefing at Naguru Police Headquarters, Ministry spokesperson Simon Peter Mundeyi explained that these passports had not been collected by their respective holders despite repeated calls for retrieval. The destroyed passports were part of the dark blue version that had expired, with many applicants failing to pick them up from the passport offices.
Mundeyi further revealed that an additional 60,000 passports, returned to the Ministry by labor companies after failed negotiations, are still waiting to be claimed.
“We urge all Ugandans who had approached labor companies for overseas work but were unsuccessful to visit the passport office in Kyambogo to pick up their documents,” Mundeyi said.
In a related development, the Ministry has warned that a total of 12,580 e-passports, which are yet to be collected, may face similar destruction if not retrieved in a timely manner.
