Opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi popularly known as Bobi Wine has taken to social media to call out the regime’s apparent inefficiency in renewing expired National IDs.
The outspoken National Unity Platform (NUP) president minced no words declaring that a government incapable of managing essential services like National IDs cannot be trusted to handle critical sectors such as roads, hospitals and schools.
“A regime that cannot renew expired National IDs cannot be trusted to fix roads, hospitals, schools, etc. It is simply tired and expired and needs to be OUT!” Bobi Wine tweeted.
National ID in Uganda is more than just identification, it is a lifeline document need to access essential services from opening bank accounts to obtaining passports and voting in national elections, a valid National ID is mandatory.
However, thousands of Ugandans have been left in administrative limbo struggling to renew their expired IDs.
Reports indicate that the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) has been overwhelmed by excesses numbers of renews leaving citizens frustrated.
This is not the first time Uganda has faced a national ID crisis but Bobi Wine’s timing is significant.
The country is inching closer to another election cycle and opposition argue that the failure to expedite ID renewals could be a deliberate ploy to exclude opposition voters.
Bobi Wine’s comments resonate with many Ugandans who feel that the government is losing its grip on fundamental public services.
Roads remain damaged with potholes, hospitals are underfunded and schools lack basic facilities. To many, the failure to manage National ID renewals is a symptom of a much larger governance crisis.
However, the Internal Affairs State Minister, Gen David Muhoozi last year told Parliament that national Identity cards that expire in 2024 will remain valid for another year due to technical issues.
“This renewal and mass registration for National IDs was supposed to commence on 01 June 2024, however, we experienced challenges of delays in procurement and establishment of the new Industrial Security Information System,” he said.
“Key items are critical on this path have to be in place before commencement of the exercise and they include delivery of 5,650 biometric registration kits, delivery of blank cards, data centre, hardware and five software modules.”
Muhoozi also assured the parliament that despite inordinate delays in renewal of national IDs, steps are being taken to ensure all persons eligible for voting in the 2026 elections will have their details captured and issued with IDs to participate in the voting exercise.
