A Ugandan man identified as Moses Haabwa who is behind the fake single currency for East Africa ‘Sheafra’ that went viral on social media has spoken regarding the motive behind his endeavor.
He expressed that a key motive behind the posts was to instill hope in East Africans, showing them that ‘things can be done’.
“Posting is one way you can tap into people’s minds. If we hadn’t tweeted, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” he told the Media.
Haabwa explained that his intentions of creating the currency was triggered by the East African Community‘s (EAC) sluggishness and sense that public trust in the community was diminishing.
However, his action stirred controversy on social media platforms, as it was later debunked as fraudulent by authorities, despite initially spreading through a verified X page ‘Government of East Africa’.
“The EAC Secretariat wishes to inform all our stakeholders that the Partner States’ journey to a single currency is still a work in progress,” read the EAC statement.
“Kindly ignore any rumors circulating in social media on the unveiling of new banknotes for the region.”
Also Read: EAC Clarifies Launching Common Bank Notes
Haabwa Speaks on the Fake Sheafra Currency
Moses remarked that he hadn’t anticipated the post gaining as much attention as it did, especially since similar posts on his page had previously received minimal interaction.
“The one we released on 3rd March 2024 was the last one we were to post. I didn’t tell anyone to tweet that we had ‘launched’, but how the media picked it up we don’t know,” he said.
He believes that his project to push for closer East African union is “God-given”.
“The EAC Secretariat can’t run away from the truth, East Africans want unity”, he added, saying that the EAC should speed up the work on the single currency.
When questioned about the legality of his actions, Haabwa responded, “We are in the process of making these things legal, step by step. Starting from the country we are in.”
Over the last three months, the group he heads has been issuing samples or “specimens” of various denominations of the sheafra currency on social media.
Also Read: Why the Dollar is Falling & Whether You Should Sell, Experts
EAC Fake Currency on X
The X account named ‘Government of East Africa’ shared on 3rd March 2024, the specimen of a 5 SHEAFRA note saying “The East African Sheafra of SHF.5 Currency Note of fuv5 has finally Landed”.
Through the post, the user said that the currency will help bolster the regional economy and one SHEAFRA will be valued at $0.76.
Subsequently, the purported ‘government of East Africa’ embarked on a relentless spree of posting the banknote with various captions, eliciting mixed reactions from viewers.
“The East African Sheafra (SHF) is here a Unifying factor for the East African Monetary balances and Economic Equilibrium. We’re God Chosen,” read one subsequent post.
Another one read: “The East African Sheafra is a God Chosen Currency, let’s bear with it and embrace it, for with God, we do operate in his own Wisdom, knowledge and Understanding. Let’s give God a chance to lead so that we may not delay.”
