Three arrested for selling fake Covid-19 vaccination cards

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The police have arrested three people accused of selling forged Covid-19 vaccination cards. The arrested include; Shamira Rashid, Wanagoli Abdallah and Kakande Muhamood.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday at the Uganda Media Centre, Dr Warren Namara, the Director of the State House Health Monitoring Unit said they received information that some people were selling fake vaccination cards each at 150,000 Shillings.

He says that they laid a trap by providing 300,000 Shillings to one of their investigators who was provided with a number on which to deposit the money. After some days, they were told to go and pick the card at Al Saud, a Labour Export Company located at Salaam road in Muswangali zone, Makindye division.

After picking the cards, the receptionist at the Labour company, Shamira was immediately arrested who then led them to Wangoli who also was at the same company. It was Wangoli who led the investigators to Kakande Muhamood who was found at Maria Galleria building in Kampala where he was operating from.

At the premises, the police were able to recover 46 printed certificates of good conduct which are normally issued by the Directorate of Interpol and International relations, four NIRA birth and death certificates, 26 photocopies of passports, one stamp and one seal of the directorate of Interpol and one stamp bearing no names.

Namara condemned the forging of vaccination cards saying such acts work contradict to the government’s efforts to defeat the Covid-19 pandemic.

He called upon Ugandans to instead of going for fake certificates to go and be vaccinated in order not only to get genuine certificates free of charge but also fight Covid-19.

“I don’t know why somebody should run to a place to buy a fake vaccine certificate when the ministry of health has told you everything. It has told you where to go to get a vaccine but as a Ugandan, you opt to go behind and do something that you have been advised against,” Namara said.

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