The Chief Executive Officer of Unwanted Witness Uganda Godfrey Wokulira Ssebagala has advised the government to desist from surrendering citizens’ personal data to private business entities.
According to Mr. Ssebagala, there is no law that allows the government to share people’s private data with private entities like the telecom companies.
Ssebagala’s concern comes in the wake of the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and, the National Identity and Registration Authority (NIRA) allegedly giving in to a request by the telecom companies, to furnish the latter with individuals’ National ID data, to reinforce the identification of subscribers through Sim Card registration.
Sim card registration in Uganda started way back in 2013 with over 15 million subscribers, and Ssebagala says his organization is not opposed to the process.
Meanwhile, Ssebagala also noted that if implemented, the revelation of private individuals data will contravene Article 27(2) of the 1995 Constitution that deals with the privacy of individual Ugandans.
“It is the responsibility of the government to uphold and protect people’s freedom and rights to anonymity and privacy,” he said, adding that subscribers’ data has been in the hands of the telecom companies unlawfully.
