Dr. Jimmy Spire Ssentongo, a Ugandan academic celebrated for his satirical cartoons advocating against corruption, has in recent years expanded his influence through impactful social media campaigns exposing systemic failures in governance and service delivery gaps. The associate professor at Uganda Martyrs University and Makerere University has coordinated high-profile online movements such as the 2023 #UgandaHealthExhibition, #KampalaPotholeExhibition and the 2024 #UgandaParliamentExhibition, all of which sparked national debate and official responses.
On 7th August 2025, Jim Spire officially launched the #StopAirtelTheft campaign on X to address alleged fraud in Airtel Uganda’s mobile money services. This campaign was triggered following his brother Joseph Kayinga’s phone being stolen during the funeral of their late brother, Dr John Spire Kiggundu, in June 2025. In a tweet dated 2 August, Jim revealed that Joseph did not have any credentials or passwords (PIN) saved on the phone that the thief could have used to access his Airtel Money account. Despite this, the thief managed to withdraw all funds on the Airtel Money account and even secured a loan in Kayinga’s name.
This prompted Ssentongo to accuse Airtel Uganda of negligence and possible insider involvement, given how easily the unauthorised access occurred. He called on (tagged) the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and the Bank of Uganda (BOU) to intervene, demanding a refund and systemic fixes, and threatened a broader campaign if Airtel did not respond.
On and after 3 August 2025, Ssentongo used his X account, which has over 350K followers, to retweet and share posts from similar victims, including an X poll on 4 August, in which 79% of respondents voted that they believed Airtel Uganda cheated them in the same way.
When Airtel Uganda issued its statement on 6 August confirming investigations into Kayinga’s case and urging customers to safeguard their PINs, many people had already shared similar unresolved mobile money fraud complaints. This widespread dissatisfaction meant Airtel’s response failed to address the growing public outcry. Instead, the issue quickly escalated from an individual grievance to a nationwide debate on digital financial safety, driven by rising reports of fraud and concerns about systemic vulnerabilities.
The continuous sharing of screenshots showing unresolved cases, amplified by Jim Spire and other users under his posts, further intensified the #StopAirtelTheft campaign, demanding Airtel’s accountability and raising concerns over how these fraud cases are handled.
Rumours have it that Kayinga’s case was silently resolved through a refund, but Airtel has yet to address the numerous other cases flooding social media. Responding to the silence, Ssentongo continues to challenge Airtel Uganda by tweeting under their promotional posts, asking, “Could you respond to the issues we are raising and tell us how you plan to protect people’s mobile money from thieves who access their passwords? Is that too much for a customer to ask?
What do you think about this #StopAirtelTheft campaign? Have you ever faced issues with Airtel Money or mobile money fraud? If so, how was it resolved? Comments…
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Banks. “Deposits are protected by the Deposits protection fund.
Airtel “CUSTOMER DEPOSITS ARE STOLEN BY AIRTEL STAFF”#StopAirtelTheft pic.twitter.com/U3hgkLfM6k
— AIDEN KALIISA (@AidenKaliisa) August 10, 2025
