By Valerie Omweru Alex
Yesterday my good friend Stella Nyanzi posted about going to buy an airtime scratch card of UGX 500, something she has not been used to. In my response, I talked about my salary being low and living in Kampala. The cost of living and the pressures young people go through to succeed in life.
I like documenting my work all the time and I have added some pictures to my story. I do not know how to do photoshop!
My salary is UGX 619, 406 as net. When I joined service in January 2012, my starting salary was UGX 401, 632 and I had to pay rent of 180K per month in a single room in Ntinda. After one and a half years in service, I shifted to a more spacious house in Bukoto which had a sitting room and a bedroom. My transport to work was about 1K and on a bad day, I had to walk to Kamwokya then hope on a taxi so I can pay shs 500 (that’s a coin of course).
Recently, in March, I shifted to a more spacious house that has two bedrooms so I can stay with my sisters and the rent now takes slightly more than half my salary but I’m grateful at being able to be with my siblings especially when they are home on holidays.
While a student at campus (UCU), I learnt serious economics that you save, save and save. By the time I completed campus, I had my liquid cash of about Ugx 2.5M and it is that money that I used to buy Cement to start my house project in Serere.
The house you see below in the photos I started breaking ground in May 2011, just a few days when I came home only to find that acting District planner of Serere his name is Otutu Nathan had dubiously put hard core stones in my plot and that was a sign of planning to construct. I bought this plot at government rates of 220K when I as still a Diploma student at National Teachers college, Kaliro in 2007.
During my X-mas holidays in December 2010, I paid people to make bricks for me and I personally participated (a picture of me with the bricks before they work was complete is also below), so that helped me save and cut the costs. My village pastor told me some years back in his sermons that the Bible says that if you want something, sit down and count the cost. That’s exactly what I did.
At the time of my graduation, at UCU in July, my house was at the ring beam and I didn’t have a graduation party as I had to save every penny to save the walls of my house to ensure that I do the ring beam. This young man didn’t have a job but was a shrewd NRM cadre who had a strong belief that to change your situation and circumstances you have to be fair to yourself. While other students opted to stay outside campus, I chose to stay inside the University as a resident student and UCU rules are nothing to joke with. Being a resident student saved me from a reckless student life and I saved every penny possible and lived responsibly and made those who supported me very proud. From state house to my late mum.
By the time I joined service, in January 2012, I had my house praying for the roof. I bought trees in the village cheaply for timber and spent four days supervising the guys cutting them with the machine. I had two tipper lorries of timber and I had to save very shrewdly to make sure I have the house roofed. The young man chose to forego lunch in order to save. Like any office, tea is always provided, I could park my chapati knowing I would find tea at office and that would help me for the whole day.
Since February 2012, lunch is not a special fix on me. I take lunch when I can and depending on the amount of work I have done.
In 2013, I was able to buy the iron sheets from Arua Park roofing branch and those who know Paul who used to work there, thank him for me. He gave me the iron sheets at a good bargain and I was able to save a lot of money for the 142 iron sheets that I had to transport with trucks which were returning to Teso after delivery of merchandise to the city.
Eria Elijah, I am very happy for your friendship since we met in class at campus you have steadfastly become by brother from another mother, I recall you holding the back guarding that 8 million shillings jealously when we came from the bank to pay for the roofing materials and ensuring that everything was packed in the car and monitoring my journey home. I publicly thank you and am proud of our friendship.
Now for the people who say you can’t survive on small salary, go hand yourselves. What is wrong if I get an allowance once in a while when I’m carrying out official duties like pension monitoring or payroll support? Must I go to party with it or spend it on these young girls with tattooed boobs and behinds? Well, now you know.
You have to cut off avenues where your money goes to waste. A case in point is I cook 95% of my meals if I have bought a 1kg of mputa, I can eat it many times including pasting it with odii at some point as well as freezing it in my small fridge. I don’t have to go to Cafe Javas for coffee because I work. I take my lemon tea from home and sometimes park my bushera to work.
That is how I am pulling it off and I am very proud of every effort I put in every day. To the potential house wives, I got dumped last year by my sweetheart I was dating from UCU, she is graduating this July. I cried in pain for losing the Queen of my heart and the pain I went through but I now believe that maybe it is my rigidity that she could not cope with, or may be because I was uptight. I always made sure that I dropped by UCU at least once a week with a kavera from Shoprite, those love things, but once beaten, twice shy.
I am guarding my heart seriously and a woman who will get it will have to go to paradise, speak to jealous to see the direction and structural architecture of my heart. It is not easy living in a generation of we are today. We want to be like our bosses who have served for 20+ years and their perks are different from us.
With my recent promotion, my gross salary will increase from the current 744k to 902k which will now roughly be about a net 760k after taxes of pay as you earn and local service tax.
So here I am. If you truly believe and are motivated to change your situation, you can do it. I know many people from around the world who think government officials can’t survive without corruption. No we do, we have good people in the service and we want that to change.
I am very proud when I shock Ugandans at work. They come with their problems each day with bribes every other day, what does it benefit me to take the 50K of someone who has come from Karamoja, slept on a bus and needs help and they still feel they can’t be helped without paying bribes. This has to change, we need to change mindset!
Dr. Mesharch W. Katusiimeh thanks for loving and mentoring me, you have always encouraged me to be grounded in public policy and and management. Your invaluable counsel keeps me going. I remember as your students leader and class representative at campus, when we were walking and I called you boss you rebuked me. That’s the last time you have ever heard me say something inappropriate in your presence. You inspire me a lot!
Editor’s Note: The writer works at Ministry of Public Service.