Malawi Immigration tells Asian dual citizenship holder told to renounce or risk revocation

Immigration Department  has  warned  Asian businessman Kassam Nurmahomed  he risks arrest an and that his failure  to voluntarily renounce his British citizenship would have his Malawi passport revoked because Malawi does not recognise dual citizenship.

Nurmahomed was recently arrested  by the Immigration Department for contravening the Citizenship Act after he was found in possession of a British and Malawian passport when he was about to leave the country for South Africa.

But the businessman who is alleged  in possession of several passports has not renounced the British citizenship  and is also having the Malawian passport.

Immigration Department reportedly verified with the British authorities to establish his  citizenship status.

Now  authorities in Malawi are warning the Asian  businessman to either renounce or risk revocation as there is no other way out for dual citizenship holders.

“It is an individual’s personal responsibility to renounce their Malawian citizenship after obtaining citizenship in another country,” said an Immigration official.

“Malawian  citizenship can only be terminated through renouncement or revocation,” it said.

“Immigration department will proceed with revocation of citizenships as we have the evidence of breach of law,” said.

According to documents seen by Nyasa Times, Nurmahomed  had acquired the Malawian passport  number MA 867427on 26 April 2016 and started using it  alongside his British passport.

Malawi laws prohit dual citizenship.

Immigration officials asked him to surrender the Malawian passport to use his British docuements or go to renounce the UK papers for the Malawian travel documents.

But Nurmahommed challenged that he cannot surrender any of the passports, saying he will use his “connections” to keep using both documents.

He reportedly told Immigration Department  that he surrendered the British passport but sources says he had claimed to UK High Commission loss of a passport and he was issued a new booklet.

President Peter Mutharika is on record to have told the state controlled Malawi Broadcasting Corporation that the Ministry of Justice is currently working on the legislation which will enable Malawians hold dual citizenship.

The President said he will live to his promise he made in parliament e that government will review dual citizenship law.“We are currently drafting the legislation, very soon we will have the legislation,” he said.

But as the President promised, dual citizenship will come into effect when the law changes but those having dual nationalities in Malawi are contravening the law and deserve to be indicted.

Anyone, not only Asians, who are using dual citizenship before the legislation allowing more than single nationality, are committing an offence and can face charges.

Single citizenship is  a  national allegiance to a country s from the fact of having been born and raised in that country. This form of allegiance is sometimes turned into an entitlement which allows some people to make certain claims against the state.