Initially famed for being one of the first talk show hosts, Ms. Nameere Justine has focused her efforts into changing people’s lives. Shawn Mubiru caught up with Justine to discuss what inspires her to discuss issues with people, how she gets companies and institutions involved in helping those who need help.
Who is Nameere Justine?
I am a 24 year old student, a young hard working woman, who treasures every moment in life and work. I am present, happy while at home, I want everything neat. I am passionate about life; I love life and I treasure it. I don’t put up so many guards, I am an easy to relate with person wherever I go, and I tend to easily get along with people.
You made your mark while at NTV, what inspired you to become the person you are today
When I was growing up, both my parents were in leadership, what I remember our parents were a happy couple. Our parents raised us in such a way that we were taught that neighbors and friends were very important people. As young children, we would compete in watching the news so that we could inform our father of what was on the news. While doing this, I never knew that my parents were unconsciously raising me to become a person who would care about life and people around me.
Talking about the show that made me who I am today, I was inspired by Oprah Winfrey and my late mother was the driving force in this; I used to watch the show because she was watching Oprah. At school when everyone was talking about Undertaker and Sun Set Beach, for me I was sharing stories to do with Oprah Winfrey. At school I was this person who was conscious and if I saw a broken wire, I would report. If any student was locked in the dormitory by the matron, I would tell her that I think the student was wrong but locking her in there was not right as well. I was that kind of student who would care about everyone and everything around me. It was not deliberate; I would just find myself paying attention to people.
While watching Oprah and learning that her show would change lives and heal hearts, I realized that we are a community where there is lots of depression, in Uganda our problems are seasoned by our trials just because someone went through a big experience they don’t want to try again and succeed or overcome their adversity. What I learnt from Oprah is that she would use her program to tell people that it is okay or it will be okay. I thought that as Ugandans, we need that more, though I did not have television experience, I was interested in having a show like that started in Uganda to change lives. I was not interested in Television, I would have done the something on radio if given a chance and that was my dream. I was open to sell the idea to anyone who could buy it. In the beginning, I wanted to sell the idea, but my boss Catherine told me, Justine you can do it; just as you have explained to me I see it in you that you can do it. And that is how I got to start with Life Stories on NTV for two years.
Have you been able to change lives through that show?
I believe that the show did change lives, there were times when people would call me to thank me for the work I was doing, but the most touching moment was when the experiences and thoughts people shared about how the show had helped them open up to talk about their problems and also be able to find solutions for their challenges in life. I was so humbled about the willingness of individual Ugandans who came up to help those who were in need; one experience is this woman who lives on the road in Kiruhura, when people are on their way to Mbarara, they stop by and give her all sorts of help. Imagine Bank of Uganda got 28 million Uganda Shillings to help her build a house just because we sat and talked about her problems for 45 minutes! I am glad that it created an impact and changed lives. I thank God that people were watching and always looked forward to the show. I respect Ugandans and I would like to thank them for being a very loving people and caring for each other.
Your resignation was not only a shock but a surprise to many, what happened?
Yes I know they were shocked but at some point even my workmates did not believe that I had resigned, you can imagine they were shocked as everyone was, my boss kept calling me to come back and work. But I would say that it is not good to misuse people’s commitment, you realize that we have the same problems in our work places, homes, relationships, marriage and politics.
It is one problem misunderstanding one’s commitment, when you are committed to your work, then they think you are desperate. So they think they have a right to treat you in any way they feel like. When you are committed in a relationship, someone thinks that life depends on them and you have no options without them. Same thing in marriages, in politics you vote leaders and love them, they get comfortable and the next thing you know the country is in a mess.
For me it was more than money and the job, I never came looking for a job, but I came with a job. It was amazing and a dream come true for I learnt a lot in a very short time and that is why I become productive in the six months of the program. Just like I said I had no television experience and all I knew was that I could be a way to bring hope in people’s lives. I was committed to my show and that is why I was zeroed in to become a producer of my own show and for me that meant a lot to me that I was not only doing the show but I was learning and acquiring new skills.
Somebody came to a point believing that Justine had no options, but there were many who believed in me. NTV nominated me employee of the year 2012, I was new and I had only worked for one year and four months. People had worked there for seven years and had never got nominated and this was overall. Someone thought that I had over loved the job and so I was desperate. When management changed, things almost changed for me. But my show had all things going well and my sponsors were happy. Six months before I resigned I started developing the need to change; little by little I started to leave NTV. But one thing I encourage the youth, even when someone is mistreating you, you can still work and do a good job. Whatever was bringing me down at NTV never interfered with my goal of doing the very best for the show and my viewers. Things changed but I tried to make them work and air out my views, I never walked into any office to ask for a salary increment in as much as my fellow workmates used to tell me to ask for a salary increment. The only thing I could ask for was the needs to make my show better like to be availed with a second camera or to give me my old editor who was passionate about the show, which show wasn’t mine anymore. I was meant to sign a contract and the rights were not mine. So I started realizing that I had priorities as a student and one of them was to be accountable to my parent and all he needed was for me to be in class and pass at the end of my course. I realized that work had started eating into my school and I would enter a lecture room traumatized and stressed. The work that was supposed to be done in one day, you could do it in three days because you have been given one camera. It was not going right and until I finalized that decision during my exam week, I was struggling and I don’t know how I passed those exams. I realized that what was happening was affecting my show and school; the growth of the show was all I had, so I had a reality check and the in charge decided to send my editor upcountry to escort the camera crew to cover a football game. You see that the person has a show coming up and you have sent her editor up country, and people started volunteering sensing that I needed help in order for my show to run. It was a bad experience and up to today I have failed to comprehend why it happened. It became so bad for me and unfortunately I had to let go and change had to happen in that way. It was a decision I thought about, there was no bias I took my time after I tried to work it out. Though I resigned, I knew that the concept was mine and I would be able to do it elsewhere.
After your resignation we have heard so many rumours including a new show that will be aired on Urban TV and you failing to see through a contractual obligation with a production house. What is the truth?
Just as I told you, people abuse commitment in this world, when I resigned from my former employer, I wanted to do an out production. My show is a heavy show and it is hard for any TV station to produce them in-house, they have too many needs and dimensions. I registered the patent and do this show as out production. Of course, a year or two from now I will be able to afford my own equipment, a fulltime team and that couldn’t have happened now, I had to start somewhere.
I ventured in finding out who would take on my projects and I involved people who suggested different agencies and companies that would do the job well. Many production houses offered to do the show and a friend I knew suggested a guy to me and we started working and we started by trying out but first with a survey because most production companies do music videos and my show was kind of new for them. So I worked with this guy who is now saying that I did not pay him and paid up the first work. I got the guy a deal from my friend who wanted a documentary and when I took what was recorded at Urban TV, they had issues with the work and even me as a former producer I heard an issue but because I did not know the technical producing language yet these are the things that make a show. So when I started telling him about the frailties within his work, he said okay we shall see. So Bush Baby of Urban TV flagged the work and suggested that kind of work lacked in quality and had to be redone. So the guy himself suggested that we could go into a contract and I would pay a part and complete later. But I told him a contract would bring problems so I agree and we enter into a one month contract and see how the work will look like, he made the paper work and his budget had two cameras. But the two camera men came for only one program and the next program he was filming with one camera. I was not given any explanation why we didn’t have a second cameraman so I asked and told him that there is some of the work that we would be able to use because I don’t know the title language but I knew that things were not going well. I reminded him that we needed the second camera man and we had a budget for him and he said; “we can do what he would have done.” You see he is already taking advantage of me. I realized that I had paid lots of money on something that would not be on the required standard for any professional TV station. I was obliged to pay for quality and but I discovered that my part of the bargain was not met. There was a payment that was made to him and signed it off, so I told him let me pay you for what you have so far done and ended the contract. I told him that we could keep the business relationship. Even repudiating the contract was not an easy thing. There was somewhere that I took the recording to help do a promo and he said nowhere this is not good work and they were pointing the same problems using technical language while for me I was using the producer’s eye. He insisted that I pay his total amount of 12 million which was in the contract but I had already paid him 4.2 million Uganda shillings but remember I was supposed to sell this content to Urban TV and that was not the quality they wanted. After the contract was ended, the demands seemed negligible, and then he started insulting and threatening me. But our business relationship brought him a number of deals worth 10 million, but I told him that you did a good job but this is not what I wanted.
I moved on and found a new company that knew what they are doing and appreciated my show and I think production agencies need to get a union where they can be checked on their quality and professionalism in the business. He continued to threaten me and said that he was going to report me to tabloids and I told me that I couldn’t see how that could help the situation but he did not want to listen. The next thing was Red Pepper called me and told me that I refused to pay my filming crew and they are going to take you to court for failing to pay 17 million! I jokingly told my team that you guys are taking me to court and they said please do us a favor and ignore him. So involved my lawyer who later got in touch with his lawyer and interesting enough his lawyer said that as long as they knew there was no case on me and if there was anything we would have served me.
What should your viewers and fans expect in your new show?
The viewers should expect creativity and it is going to be more about the viewers and we will make sure they are more involved and able to meet some of the guests for inspiration or encouragement. We will have a very balanced show we will have a season of a whole program in terms of topic and content. We are going to grow this show to where we will have an audience get involved. We shall go throughout the country so let them expect a good program.
Your last word
First of all I want to thank everyone, today I went by Urban TV and someone said you come and see how people love you; people were breaking their backs for me and defending me. I said oh my God who are these people? People have believed in me and they are saying why is that person coming out when her show is going to happen? I want to thank them for believing in me and trusting me. Some of my fans are so passionate about what I do and they would send two pages of how they feel about my work in my inbox and all that is so important to me. I would like to thank my sponsors MK Group of companies for supporting me and my show. May God bless each one of you.
