More than 12,700 illegal immigrants have been apprehended in the special operation code-named ‘Kimbunga,’ which ended successfully on Friday.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr Simon Sirro
However, 194 illegal immigrants who were sent to their home returned to Tanzania after the countries rejected them.
In a statement to the media, the deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr Simon Sirro, on behalf of the operation commander, noted that 12,704 illegal immigrants were arrested, out of which 3,448 were Rwandans, 6,125 Burudians, 2,496 Ugandans, 589 Congolese, 44 Somalis, one Yemen and one Indian.
Deputy Commissioner Sirro revealed that a total of 194 illegal immigrants were denied entry to their countries of origin and are currently awaiting further legal procedures.
He said the first phase of the operation which started on September 6, successfully achieved its objectives, adding that 2,129 illegal immigrants agreed to voluntarily go back to their country of origin, while 8,696 were ordered by courts. He added that another 1,852 illegal immigrants were left free after the government confirmed their citizenship, while discussion are still on for 2,286 illegal immigrants to confirm their citizenship.
The special operation to flush out illegal immigrants also arrested a total of 212 suspects of armed robberies and 23 poachers of Tanzanian origin. Other paraphernalia seized in the operation include 10 hand grenades, 61 weapons including five sub-Machine Gun (SMG), 8 Shot Gun, 1 Mark IV, 1 Riffle, 1 Pistol, 3 locally made Pistol, 42 locally made Rifles and two machines for production of locally made rifles.
Others are 665 rounds of ammunition, including for SMG 561 bullets for SAR, 22 bullets for Shot Gun, 82 bullets for locally made rifle and eight fireworks. A total of 8,226 head of cattle were seized while grazing in Tanzania forest reserves. A total of 32.5m/- was collected from fines of cattle that were grazing in the national reserves.
Also seized in the operation include 2 elephant tusks and 2,105 lumber, 467 sacks of charcoal and animal hides. According to the statement, Kagera Region leads with 7,001 illegal immigrants, followed by Kigoma Region with 5,005 and Geita 698.
Among challenges faced during the operation, include the illegal immigrants who become stateless after their country of origin refused to accept them. Lack of national identification cards made it hard for the authorities to identify the real citizens and the illegal immigrants.
Deputy Commissioner Sirro said after the successful completion of the exercise, they are going to establish a task force in the three regions that will be tasked with addressing challenges that emerged. The operation involved various authorities including Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF), Police, State Intelligence Unit, Migration, Prisons, PCCB, local government authorities, departments of livestock, land, agriculture, Fisheries, Forests, Health and Wildlife.
By ROSE ATHUMANI, Tanzania Daily News
