Ugandan job seekers allege fraud by Skypins labour export firm, owner Don Chris on the run

A number of job seekers estimated to number about 100 are crying foul after labour export firm, Skypins Tours and Travel, claiming to be an employment recruitment agency taking people to work abroad allegedly fleeced them of their hard earned money.

The firm is located in Ntinda, a Kampala suburb, Uganda. Most of these had reportedly been promised to be taken in countries like Canada. Most of the victims who are girls have been tossed up and down since 2022 and up to date are still waiting.

One of them, who preferred anonymity, told this publication that he and other colleagues were made to fill application forms in 2022. They were promised Visas in a two months period and their destination was Canada.

She says on recruitment, each of the job seekers was asked to pay up to Shs15m to process their travel documents, visas, certificate of good conduct from Interpol, medical fees, membership fees, insurance and among others.

Some victims who were in hurry to travel were told they could even secure express visas and were duped to pay sh20m.

Months and months they are still stranded.

They did not go.

She says they have been in this circus of lies and fake promises until June this year when they noticed that those who had been handling them had started dodging them. Phone calls went unanswered; neither messages were replied.

She says their efforts to pressurise the firm to refund their money have yielded nothing.

That between 2022-2024 the company has been keeping over 100 job seekers in the same dilemma.

Asked why they have been reluctant to report the matter to authorities, some of the victims say they were intimidated and warned never to take that route.

But recently they gathered efforts and filed cases with the police, leading to investigations.

We have now learnt that Police has picked interest in the matter and recently stormed Skypins offices looking for owner Don Chris.

He however reportedly managed to elude arrest and he is said to be in hiding.

“The Skypin guy [Don Chris] is hunted ….he ran away, police has been coming to his office four times,” a source knowledgeable about the investigations told us.

It has been further revealed that Don Chris now claims to be out of the country.

“The day he disappeared from office locked himself inside and employees told police that he was away,” a source adds.

Efforts to reach out to Skypins were unsuccessful.

However, Skypins’ agent Brian Wako previously denied allegations, citing Canada visa issues and offering refunds to victims with payment receipts.

Another Skypins official claims that their role stops at helping victims’ process visas but not securing them and this clause is clear in the agreements signed between victims and the labour export firm.

“We don’t don’t give the visas but we help to process…so it’s the embassy [Canada] to blame in any case,” says another agent at Skypins.

However, the victims who are mostly girls insist that they never saw a clause like that while signing the agreements and instead Skypins officials in the beginning assured them of securing visas for them.

Watch this space!