Ifeanyi Chukwudi

If you ever go to Kampala, Uganda, I suggest that you leave the city at least 5 hours before your flight. That is discounting the Kampala city traffic which is like Lagos traffic. First, there is a speed limit of 60 mph on the way to the airport. Then when you finally approach the airport toll gate, you must disembark from your taxi and go through a screening point. There’s usually a long queue of people on foot. When you are through, you go and enter your taxi again and it takes you to the actual airport. Then when you get to the airport, you pass through another screening point with your luggage before you get to the check-in counters. After checking in, you go through yet another security check where you now have to bring out laptops, take off jackets, belts, watches, etc. After that stage, you then get to Immigration. There are very long queues and the Immigration officers are not exactly in a hurry. Between checking passports, they’ll answer phone calls and laugh with their friends. They’ll also disappear occasionally and come back when they are good and ready. After Immigration, you then go through the final security point. You bring out laptops again and take off belts, watches, jackets, phones, etc. This time, you also take off shoes. When the airport is not busy, between arriving at the toll gate and getting to the departure lounge is a 2 and half hour process. I thought that it was unwise to start challenging “constituted authority” here because I was caught up in “Presidential movement” here. It delayed us for an hour. There are fierce looking soldiers every few meters. You have to park you car off the road completely and all passengers must disembark from their cars. The soldiers then literally push everyone off the side of the road and you must stand right next to a building. I was frightened that nobody laughed when the soldiers were chased some chicken that were roaming on the road towards the buildings.😂 I asked my taxi driver and he said he thinks that the approach is that every living being should be off the road and its setbacks. He also said that they jam phone and internet signals. I couldn’t be sure of this because my MTN roaming was patchy. Anyway, just leave your Kampala hotel some 5 or 6 hours before the flight. And be humble! 😂✌🏽