Murkomen, Immigration Services director mum as passports saga rages

Since reports emerged that passports were being issued to foreigners, the government has maintained a loud silence over a matter that represents a serious breach of national security and exposes Kenya to diplomatic consequences.

One week after the scandal was uncovered, there has been no word or action from the Ministry of Interior, which is directly involved in issuing this vital document through the Directorate of Immigration Services.

Neither the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) nor the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has shown interest in the matter, even as public calls for action intensify.

The scandal has once again cast an international spotlight on Nairobi over alleged support for Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

This follows revelations that beneficiaries include Algoney Hamdan Daglo Musa of the RSF and controversial Zimbabwean businessman Wicknell Chivayo, a regular visitor to Kenya.

On October 8, 2024, the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on Algoney for allegedly orchestrating the supply of weapons that fuel the conflict in Sudan.

Algoney is the procurement director of the RSF and brother to Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, also known as Hemedti, the group’s leader.

“By arming the RSF, his actions have directly contributed to the RSF’s ongoing siege of El Fasher in North Darfur, a city of nearly two million vulnerable civilians, and the RSF’s operations elsewhere,” said Bradley T. Smith, the acting Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, in a statement.

In essence, financial institutions or individuals that assist Algoney risk sanctions or enforcement action by the US government.

Given the gravity of the matter, Kenyans expected the government to act swiftly and take action against those who issued passports to Algoney and other foreigners.

A passport is an official government travel document certifying a person’s identity and citizenship. It bears personal data, photographs and signatures, among other crucial details.

In the case of Algoney and Chivayo, the document was allegedly issued to enable them to enter other countries, move funds and even secure residence in Kenya.

The implications are far-reaching if passports are issued to individuals with criminal intentions or those facing international sanctions.

And since the buck stops at their doorsteps, Belio Kipsang, the Principal Secretary for the Department of Immigration Services, should by now have issued a statement, while Immigration Services Director General Evelyn Cheluget ought to have invited the DCI and EACC to conduct investigations.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen should also have publicly commented on the scandal.

Their deafening silence is fuelling speculation that the scheme is not the work of rogue immigration officials but a well-coordinated operation sanctioned at the highest levels of government.

Murkomen is responsible for internal security, immigration, national registration and correctional services. The silence smacks of a cover-up attempt.

Efforts to obtain comments from Murkomen and Kipsang were futile, as they did not respond to text messages or calls.

The Citizenship and Immigration Act, 2011, is clear on the process of acquiring citizenship. Foreign nationals cannot apply directly for a Kenyan passport without first acquiring Kenyan citizenship after seven years of legal residency, marriage, or formal registration.

Section 13(1) of the Act provides that a person who has attained the age of majority and who has been lawfully resident in Kenya for a continuous period of at least seven years, may apply to be registered as a citizen.

Among the many requirements, the applicant must have been resident under the authority of a valid permit or have been exempted by the Cabinet Secretary in accordance with Section 34(3)(h).

Under the Act, aliens are required to submit applications through the Foreign Nationals Management Information System (FNMIS). Their details are subjected to thorough scrutiny and vetting by the National Intelligence Service (NIS), which prepares clearance reports for the Cabinet Secretary.

Once the process is completed, the Cabinet Secretary makes the final decision to approve or reject the application, after which successful applicants are registered in the national population database.

As the custodian of sensitive documents, Cheluget has betrayed the trust of Kenyans and should have apologised by now. Her responsibilities include regulating foreign national residency, granting citizenship, enforcing immigration laws, and issuing passports and visas.

The NIS, headed by Noordin Haji, will also face scrutiny, as it is the agency responsible for clearing foreign nationals to acquire Kenyan passports. Among its key roles is detecting activities relating to espionage, sabotage, terrorism or subversion, or any intention of such activities detrimental to Kenya’s interests.

The silence of top government officials is deeply concerning in a matter that could tarnish Kenya’s international image and undermine national security.

DCI boss Mohamed Amin said investigators are ready to probe the scandal. He added that in the past they have arrested government officials involved in malpractices that threaten national security.

“Not long ago, we investigated and arrested registration of persons officers who were colluding with cartels to issue national identity cards to foreigners,” said Amin.

The scandal was exposed by The Standard, which uncovered how the government allegedly deployed an intricate web that bypassed established protocols and guidelines to issue passports to aliens.

Some of these individuals, flagged globally for arms dealing and gross human rights violations, were allegedly able to obtain protection by corrupting and manipulating Kenyan systems to acquire citizenship and become passport holders through a fraudulent scheme.

The Standard also obtained access to documents used to legitimise more than 20 Sudanese nationals as Kenyan passport holders after they were illegally assigned Kenyan citizenship.

The process reportedly involved uploading application forms into the system and scanning signatures inserted by immigration officials, allegedly acting under instructions from state agents.

According to insiders at the Immigration Department, the Sudanese nationals applied for passports using their Sudanese passports, with details indicating that they had been naturalised as Kenyan citizens.

However, unlike other applicants who must present themselves at immigration offices to have their photographs taken and documents verified, they did not appear in person. Instead, they sent their photographs to an immigration official to process their documents.

The applicants also sent scanned images of their signatures to contacts within the Immigration office.

When the scheme was exposed, details of Algoney’s and Chivayo’s passports were immediately deleted from the immigration database. However, Algoney’s footprints still appeared in one application form listed for a minor identified as his child.

Last year, President William Ruto faced backlash for hosting RSF leaders in Nairobi. Critics accused him of providing the group not only political support but also a logistical platform from which to operate.

Sudan’s government recalled its ambassador in protest, and accused Kenya of interfering in its internal affairs.

Ruto and his administration rejected the allegations, insisting the RSF’s presence was intended to facilitate dialogue and peace, not to endorse a paramilitary group.