Training vital for National Security Information Systems

By James Katongana

In a bid to operationalise Article 16 0f the constitution of Uganda (1995) and section 7 and 13 of the Uganda Citizenship and Immigration Control Act, Cap 66, the National Citizenship and Immigration Control Board (NCIB) is in the process of implementing the National Security Information System (NSIS) project.

The major object is threefold; to identify, verify and register Ugandans for purposes of issuance National Identification Number (NIN) and National Identity Cards respectively. Some of the advantages of obtaining identity cards are but not limited to:

ü     be identified as a Ugandan citizen

ü     enjoy the rights to vote

ü     assert your rights and status as a citizen

ü     A right to a national passport

ü      prove yourself for national service

ü     right to national passport

ü     right to employment in both private and public sectors in Uganda

In turn, the state is obliged to protect its citizens and their property as well as providing social services. The state can only do it by registering its citizens separating them from foreign immigrants resident in Uganda. Uganda as a member of EAC is also obliged to provide identity cards to ease travel within the community. Rwanda has already done it.

The success of this exercise will largely depend on the authenticity of information given by the local administration and citizens themselves. Much as the burden of proof lies with the person making application to be registered as a citizen in order to get a national identification number and the card, the registration officer in all cases has a duty to prove that all the requirements presented are legally met. That is why thorough training is handy in enabling the personnel involved in this exercise to understand the citizenship intricacy.

My biggest worry is the usual moral decadence-the cancer that has eaten our moral fibre to the extent that we cannot do without-corruption.  Our solace is in the leadership of the project. The project manager- Col. Stepnen Kwiringira, a technology expert is one of the rare personalities we have in Uganda.

He is a pioneer in technology project management- read UPDF projects. His intelligence training and background places him in the right place to unearth the dirt that will have been used in the exercise. We have more hope than expectations that this exercise will achieve a lot.

The registration officer has an enormous duty to perform during and after this mass registration. Almost in all cases of registration he/she must be knowledgeable to detect and provide guidance in proof of documents presented to him/her. For instance, if someone whose both parents are Ugandans comes for registration and has passed all documentary test, it is the duty of the registrar now to require the applicant to associate himself/herself with the tribe by speaking the language or any other question about the tribe but what about someone whose two parents were born in Uganda before independence? Much as he/she is a Ugandan by birth and needs to prove with a birth certificate of his/her parents, the registrar needs to ascertain the proof of those documents.

Iam of the view that thorough training is required for personnel involved because improper decisions may result from inadequate training and proper analysis of criteria set out in citizenship laws and render a person stateless which is dangerous.

The writer is a Pan Africanist

katonganajames@rocketmail.com