Events at Uganda hotel before Chaka Chaka 'deportation'

A journalist narrates his experience with police while trying to access the musician following her arrival in Uganda.

Although I had no invite or appointment with South African singer Yvonne Chaka Chaka at Pearl of Africa Hotel, where she had been staying as she prepared to perform at the Enkuka Yomwaka show at the Kabaka’s palace in Mengo, Kampala, I did not think there would be much of a problem accessing her.

So I set off from the office on a boda boda, neither anxious nor in anticipation of any trouble. We reached the hotel using Nakasero road near State House and All Saints Cathedral and I went through the routine check before walking into the premises.

THOROUGH CHECKS

I should have noticed the vigilant officers and the parked patrol cars right from the gate of the hotel but I was engrossed in trying to figure out how I could access the room Chaka Chaka was in.

The next thorough check was at the gate. Luckily, I didn’t carry any bag or camera so I was allowed to proceed easily. I also concealed my identity as a journalist.

When I reached the final check point, I was asked for my identification after another vigorous check. My work identity card was in my pocket so all hell broke loose.

“Where are you going? If you are a journalist, please leave this place before you are noticed by the security,” one of the guards whispered to me.

I had not noticed the gravity of the situation until this point.

COVER

The guards looked tense and fidgeted as if they were also under surveillance.

As we held this short conversation while assessing the situation, a three-star police officer came from the back towards us.

The guards asked me not to panic and to stay put so the hovering officer would not suspect a thing.

“Afande we are trying to assess this regular visitor of ours because we don’t want him to be under any threat,” the guard said, with a slight tremor in his voice.

“Go ahead, but he should be careful,” the officer replied before leaving.

In a faint voice, the guard told me, “Two journalists we earlier stopped from entering [the building] were arrested and whisked away. We don’t know where they have been taken. That is why we are telling you, please help yourself. We have already protected you."

MISSION ABORTED

Just like that, I aborted my mission to meet the artiste as I risked being arrested considering what the guards had told me.

Rumour had spread across different media platforms that the celebrated artiste had been blocked from performing at the annual event organised by the Buganda kingdom and was facing deportation.

It had also been said that no journalist was allowed to film or write about the saga.

As I walked down the stairs of the hotel, I saw many officers, both army and regular police, guarding the premises. It was harder to take pictures at this point.

CONTRADICTIONS

Asked to comment on the tight security at the hotel, Uganda People’s Defense Forces spokesperson, Brig Richard Karemire, said that they were deployed because of a police function.

“We are always conscious of security ... that is why we are here. I don’t know why you were blocked but you could crosscheck with the security manager at that place,” he said.

At 4.30pm, the police spokesperson, Mr Fred Enanga, released an audio statement saying Chaka Chaka had been escorted back to Entebbe International Airport by police and that she had boarded the next plane to South Africa through Rwanda.

He said she was deported because she had an ordinary visa, not a work visa, yet she was in Uganda to perform at New Year festivities.

Later on Tuesday, however, Chaka Chaka posed a video on her Twitter page, saying "all is well" and that she decided not to appear as "there were just too many things I could not understand or explain".

She added, "...not deported, not arrested, not captured ... everything is fine, everything is in order ..."