Uganda, Feb. 22 -- The first time I saw Khalid Gamdad's Mercedes Benz W123 was during the Coronation drive on July 23, 2022, at the Uganda museum, which was the starting point. At the time, it was white and well maintained. Most of its parts were still intact, including the Mercedes logo that visibly sits on the edge of the bonnet.

The original car card shows that when the 45-year old German brand was imported into Uganda in 1986, the 1979 model was first owned by Edward Mawanda Chwa, a Prince in the Buganda Kingdom then. The second owner was David Namugala Mawanda, Prince Chwa's son.

There is, however, missing documentation as to how John Burrows Lumu, a former rally driver got the car before he eventually sold it to Gamdad, the fourth...