One Decade

With approximately one hour and thirty minutes I sit here to chronicle this. But before I write much I should say that this article is inspired by another man’s. I rarely write the details of my life for the simple fact that I find them less important than the lessons that they present to me, so I concentrate on the lessons. Today however I find myself inspired by a better man, Isaac Tibasiima. And this one posting is mostly dedicated to him; I pray I do the art and the ministry, the justice due.

When this decade was ushered in little was mentioned of it because for most of us the millennium was a more important time block to focus on. But today as it comes to an end, I will summarize my life through it. At its birth I was getting to senior three at Kiira College Butiki a teenager just beginning to lose his way and a long way I got lost. The drinking, girls, pornography and foul language were my dark side; I was also the council speaker and had my share of excellent class performances. I was met by a kind woman, a teacher of mine whose importance to my life has kept unfolding, thank you Mrs. Muwanguzi Juliet.

I finished both my Ordinary and Advanced levels of education, broke up with one girlfriend to get to another, and broke up with her as well. I met Christ on the floor of my bedroom, saw Him fight the forces of darkness with the power of His Light and that moment has always stayed with me, because I did not read about it, I saw Him do it, in my bedroom. I experienced His power at work in me able to cast demons out and away, and then realized that they too are real and active, not dead.

I joined university, much to the discouragement of those that supported me, and realized how God can move time, space and nature for those that He calls His own. Strangers, friends and friends of friends, pulled funds to see me through university. I learnt that one good shirt was just okay if you learnt to wear it right, and that being skinny was only a thing everyone else saw but me. I realized that friendships start with a smile, sharing a sit, shaking hands or borrowing class notes and that the people that love always stay, through hurting and healing. I realized that though I knew so many people, not all of them got to know me and that was okay. I started a business with just 1500UGX and saw it multiply simply because I learnt to treat children right, and every home sends children to the shop, they are the main reason groceries are bought. I beat all my competitors, getting there before 7:00 and leaving by 20:00, making sure I had the time to play with two of my nephews, Jojo and Dickson.

I graduated from University.

I volunteered at my church and worked alongside some of the most amazing people, Liz Kitongo (Then Liz D) Robert Musoke, Kiiza Wilfred, Emily and Alfred. These people made me realize that a great group is not only made by those that catch the fish, but also those that wash the nets. Started another business and lost greatly because my completion was better placed. But I am forever grateful for starting Simply Fruity, with Liz Kitongo because I realized that all things are possible, if we are stupid enough to believe and wise enough to trust God.

I proposed to a girl, whose beauty I found more in her silence, and her strength in her words. She looked long at me and simply held my hand to pray. Eight days later she said yes, though I realized that she needed more time. We went through a time of simply trying to understand the situation and the two people directly involved, my only anchor being God, because I presented my case to Him way before I ever proposed to her and when I felt the peace in my heart, I proceeded with my desire. Many times I felt myself wanting to give her time off, because she might have found it harder than I imagined. I have seen that constant loving and trusting God brings results that the heart has never imagined. I have realized that this girl, who laughs like a child is the one I want to invest the rest of my life with, and that she gets the point.

Started some of the most amazing friendships, Belinda, Mildred, Timothy, Priscy, Sheila and most surprisingly, Isaac whom having met many years ago was still a stranger to me. I have enjoyed all the telephone conversations, the secrets shared the time and conversations given.
Got a job as a sales representative with PAX insurance Company, an experience that I will forever be glad I got. I realized that much as I wanted to be a finance student, selling was more my passion and that’s what I will pursue. I was able to stand by my little sister Anna when she was pregnant, though my own life demands remained a stumbling block. I learnt that people are more important than, laws, norms, order and property. That all those are useless if they do not value people above themselves. I had a quarrel with my big brother, a most heart breaking event, and one I had prayed would never occur. Well it did, and while I still stand by my beliefs in the quarrel, I found time and meaning to go and apologize to him for the simple reason that he is the kindest man, that slaved to raise me and all the others. I learnt that we may not always agree but love is forever.

Stayed with one of the most amazing and kind women I know and realize that sometimes, some things are simply not meant to be and that even the best of intentions can be failed if that is the case. I repented for my rebellion, and realized that there is no escape from the purposes of God and that the Israelites should have learnt something good in Egypt, a form of Character that was needed in them and that simply because honey is available, it does not mean it’s ours to eat.
Realized that family are the only people that stay after everyone else has gone and it’s important to stay for then when you can. The men I have met are not in there forties but they have touched my life profoundly. Mr. Ssembatya Edirisa, Mr. Rubibi Emanuel, Mr. Oyite George( who, along with his wife, Aziza, and daughter Lisa, literally took me in as a member of the family. I have enjoyed the delicious meals we enjoyed together and the conversations. I truly believe that George is the man for the job and the season), Mr. Kalule Robert and those I have already mentioned above have changed my life.

I got another job and realized how my childhood dream to travel the Pearl of Africa is coming to pass. I have met wonderful people, all my workmates are amazing, we have our stretches but most of the times we make business happen, and that worms my heart as I learn.
The best gift this decade is the eight children I got in Watoto Childcare Ministries. With an amazing mother, Mama Jacky Kabarisa, I have found that the blessings of God are simply amazing. Every time I go home, every Sunday, I realize how blesses I am to have the most handsome boys, Allan Kigenyi, Andrew Kisambira, Ibrahim Sendaula, Daniel Tushabe, and Kato Paul, and the most beautiful girls, Akankunda Mercy, Ajambo Leila, and Kisakye Noelina as my God given. I have also realized the strength of many other children, that have silently inspired me, Joshua, Nakkazi Lillian, Sapiri Lillian, Marjorie Mukisa, Alinda, Prosy, Mary, Michael and Livingstone, Douglas, Annet, William and Joel and I am glad I met them all. The men in the Father’s Heart Ministry have inspired me to be a better man and Father, Milton, Babu, Emma, Martin, Yosia, it has been a pleasure meeting you all.

I face the new decade armed with the knowledge that while great things are bound to happen, we need to be a praying people. That our prayer is going to not only propel us to great heights, its going to knock the hold the enemy has had on many of our friends off. That many are going to be rescued because we took time, not to condemn churches, but to pray for them. That our walk this decade is going to be more about God working with us that just us running the show. I have seen the Love of God, this decade I set my heart to Him that is Love. The Word, prayer and Fasting.

I start this new decade, going to the School of Community leadership, the Amazing investment Club, and My Family in Biira and Home, my friends, my job, person and most importantly my God closest at heart. By the time this decade ends……
If I have left any details out, its because I am tired and this has been written in just an hour, usually such an article takes more time, but hey, we leave all unforgiveness in this decade.

Amazing Investment Club-Profile

Amazing

Investment

Club

Together We Invest. We Grow.
Club Profile

1.0 Summary:

The Amazing Investment Club (AIC) is a group club of long term investors who have agreed to pull monies with the aim of re-investment. The club seeks to attract individuals from all professions. The club membership will comprise of professionals from various fields like banking, insurance, medicine, education and the private business sector. The club seeks to invest money in the various schemes that are available on the market. The aim is to jointly multiply our monies while making a profit, to learn as a group of all the other investment options available on the market and grow businesses that will span global boarders. We intend to invest in Unit Trust Funds, stocks, treasury bills, real-estate, farm product and other options as we will find with creativity until we have enough to invest in insurance, banking, transportation, medicine, education and other fields that will add to our goals and profitability.

2.0 Back Ground:
Investing as a culture is still very low in Uganda especially when it comes to making long term investments. The challenges range from lack of sufficient capital, to lack of the right experience and expertise to run business. Many times the business people lack the vision to see their establishments run for more than two decades, they are simply looking to today and that limits their ambition and resolve for a greater investment.
Looking at these factors, the AIC seeks to draw from a group of investors that are ready to invest in the short term for long term benefits. Individuals who are eager to see themselves own businesses that span across borders but with the persistent and careful culture of investment are who the club seeks to attract.
The power of a group of investors is that we have access to knowledge, expertise, gifts and talents, finances and strengths that only a group can posses and make use of. Individuals from the privates sector, accounting, medicine, law, politics, farming and all those other fields that we will seek to invest in will be the strength that AIC will enjoy on our way to thrive to greatness.






3.0 Objectives:

The objectives of AIC are as below.

a) To mobilize savings from its members by way of monthly contribution to the investment club fund and to encourage members to raise funds for savings in every possible way.

b) To carry on, develop and improve any trade business whether manufacturing or otherwise which may seem to the investment club capable of being conveniently carried on in connection with its objectives herein or calculated directly or indirectly to enhance the value or render more profitable any of the investment club’s property, assets or rights.

c) To invest the investment club funds in such ways as are financially profitable be it in buildings and other related ventures and for this matter to engage in property and estate development, habitat, environment and real property development and to deal with other housing and development concerns in Uganda and abroad.

d) To increase investment knowledge among the members through our monthly investment discussions and talks from successful business personalities as well as research reports carried out by the research and development team, aided by all the members.

e) To promote the investment culture in the country by partnering with different stake holders to reach out to the younger generations, in secondary and primary schools as well as the institutions of higher learning in the country.

f) To do all such other things as are incidental or conducive to the attainment of the investment club objects or any of them or the performance of its functions.


4.0 Membership;

Membership to the club is voluntary meaning that members are free to join as long as they satisfy the stipulated requirements. Membership is not based on sex, religion, political ideologies or nationality. Those can be found on the club application form and the termination of membership form.

5.0 Administration:

The club leadership is comprised of a club president, the club secretary, the club treasurer and the vice president all who will be voted in office once a year at the annual general meeting. Their roles can very well be found in the bye laws of the club.
There will be committees to take charge of the different investment options and to give advice on those areas that will need their expertise. For example the land and construction committee will be in charge of determining whether we are buying legitimate land and if the price is good and fair enough. The other committees will be determined as we grown in investments and as we diversify. All these will be voluntary services but results will be very expected to be accurate and on time.
The goal is to get every member involved in something without burdening a single individual. It will also provide very good checks and balances as reports will be demanded and no single individual will have the space to dictate on a decision.
6.0 Activities:
The club will be engaged in such activities;

6.1 Monthly meetings: These will be conducted at pre-determined locations once a month. The members are required to have fulfilled their monthly contribution by then and at the meetings they will simply submit the pay slips to the treasurer as the meetings go on.
A review of the previous month’s activities will be done and a projection of the next month’s activities will be done, responsibilities will be assigned and taken as well as reports and updates submitted and given to all the members.
Business ideas will be given and reviewed and progress monitored. Major decisions will be voted upon and a tentative agenda for the next meeting will be given.
6.2 Sports Days and Group Outings: The club will have quarterly outings for building the team. The members will pay for this outing and not the club. The frequency of meeting may be adjusted as the members will see meet and the location of the outing will also be determinate by the members. This may also involve attending member’s weddings and other functions that will require our presence. All these will be done to help the group grow together and to learn more about and from each other.
6.3 School Visits: These will occur at the time intervals that the members will determine schools will be visited and encouraged to start investment clubs will form a point for the club to disseminate investment knowledge. More developments may arise from this program that will also serve as our CSR.
6.4 Investment Tours: The members will be under obligation to visit each and every investment onsite. This will help build a sense of ownership among the members of the club.

7.0 Collection of Money:

DFCU is a bank that has stood out to help and support investment clubs. So it’s very important that the account is held at the bank. The bank lends up to 150% of a registered club’s total savings which following 2400000 UGX monthly saving alone, gives us an annual 28800000 UGX. This means that at the end of the year it will be possible to borrow up to 42300000 UGX. Imagine what we can do with that.
Members will save a minimum of 50000 UGX a month, (or any other figure that the investment club members will find necessary) and any sum above that as long as it’s not more than 20% of the total monthly savings of the members. These monies will be deposited on the club bank account and the members will only bring the bank deposit slip as evidence of their making such a deposit.
This money has two channels that it will get to first. The club bank account will keep a pre-agreed upon sum and the investment option agreed upon will also take the amount allotted to it.

8.0 Investment Decisions

Members are free to come up with investment ideas that they are profitable for the whole club and not just the individuals. They will forward these ideas especially at the monthly or bimonthly meetings depending on what will be agreed upon.
Each investment decision will be preceded by deliberation by the research and development committee, these will determine whether the idea is viable or not. They R&D committee will work with the particular committee that are directly responsible for the investment. Say, if it’s a purchase of land, the land and construction committee will be involved. Each committee will be responsible to firstly develop the operation procedures in the particular areas that apply to their responsibilities as will be outlined.
We intend to look majorly in the areas of farming, poultry and piggery if agreed upon and also real estate for the start.


Below is a sample of the expected Investment and the Expected Returns. Neglecting the Transaction Costs and the Bonuses Rewarded. We work with the assumption that the monthly collection will be 2400000 UGX , but it could be more.(Sorry , it does not show on Bloger)
These are just some of the short term investments that we could venture in. there are others like leasing land for say real-estate or farming of any nature the prediction of whose returns is not possible for now. With more people and more ideas we shall make this an amazing success and experience as all of us will be active investors.

9.0 The Future:

It is true that wealth is grown and making dreams come true is a process that does not only come with a single person’s input. When people with diverse knowledge and placed in different spheres of influence come together to work together its very obvious success is on the way. We shall invest in real-estate and that’s just for the start. When we stay together, we shall see the club invest in other sectors of the economy like banking, insurance, transportation, farming, recreation and so many others.
Our collective experiences and energies will be relevant in making this happen. So I call upon all investors to join us in this endeavor. We can make this decade ours of achievements.

10.0 Conclusion:

At the end of the first year, we shall have a minimum of 28800000 UGX if all 24 people make their monthly contribution, and with DFCU we shall be able to borrow up to 150% of those savings. Imagine what we can do with amount of money. The opportunity is with us
As a group we have unlimited and unexplored horizons to reach. I ask you to join me in this effort as we build wealth, enterprises and grow businesses that shall span beyond the borders of the African Continent.

11.0 Way Forward:

A date for the meeting of all the interested parties is being discussed with other friends and consultants and will soon be communicated to all that will show interest. Then we shall discuss the more important issues like how to register the club because it requires a minimum of 5 people and also the other regulations as stated in the bylaws will be discussed and agreed upon. There will be other issues added to the list as will be communicated.

12.0About The Club President:

I am Ntumwa Edward Lubega a Ugandan by decent and a graduate from Makerere University Business School with an honors Bachelors degree in Business Administration.
I have worked with PAX Insurance Company as a Sales Agent and now I work with BASE Technologies, a solar lights company that’s a subsidiary of Barefoot Power in Australia, http://www.barefootpower.com/.
I am a member of Watoto Church and I love Christ. I love Travelling, taking risks, photography, music, reading, writing, investing and growing wealth. Children are my passion though I have none of my own yet. I have run two personal businesses in the past, one I sold off, one I was out competed and learnt my lessons. I believe that by making business happen from all tiers of the economy, we can achieve tremendously.
I am continually studying new subjects and I am an enlisted student of the school of community leadership, http://questleader.com .Classes start in February this year. I am ever grateful that you read through this profile and are to tell more friends about it. You can respond back to me on the addresses provided below.
Contacts:
Ntumwa Edward Lubega
+256- 752-720202
nentumwa@gmail.com
http://ntumwatoday.blogspot.com/

Making Life Happen

This morning, a woman woke up next to a man, a stranger, they have been married for years and yet now she feels she does not know him another woke up next to a stranger, a man, she doesn’t know him, but that’s the only way she knows to take care of her children, that’s the only way she has grown to know. A man walked into the public toilets this morning, that’s his work place, that’s what he does, keeps them clean for you and me, a woman woke to go to the garden, the rains are coming, another read through her presentation, at exactly the same time, she is the board chairperson. A soldier stepped on the front line, in a foreign land, his country, his mission at heart.

We all wake each morning, wake to the tasks, the thoughts, the decisions and the moments that belong to us. They are what we have to work through to make life. Life as we know it, life as we want it or to that life. We are all making life happen each day. The policeman that arrests a speeding driver and the taxi driver rushing to his next stop are all making life happen.
The question many times is not what life we are making, but how we are making life happen. If we care to think about it, how we make life happen for us always affects the way others will make theirs happen and more critical still, it affects what life they are making happen. When we travel on those upcountry journeys where man and animal share space on the bus, when we are served a drink in stained cups, with soiled hands and a smile, we experience how work contributes to the making of life and we see people that are passionate about that which they are doing, people that have not taken all the care as we know it but as they know it. And their care affects us in some ways, ways that we may appreciate, or grow to appreciate later.

The point is we are interlocked individuals, all of us. The taxi driver and his assistant, the waitress and the chef, the teacher and the student, we are all constantly affecting each other’s lives. Some from so close while others from distances we cannot fathom. When we pay less attention to our lot, when we despise the lot of others, we are only dooming ourselves. The husband that thinks his decade long wife unfitting, the wife that grows cold and distant to the man that’s father to her children, all have to get to a point where they realize just how important the life they make for themselves is to as far as their grandchildren’s children.

Our lot in life may be small, it may be great, but it is always important. We are not to live without accounting. When we neglect the virtue of work and the virtues that should accompany that we should look at our government and the services that need our tax money to make us better as a people. When we start a culture that we know to be wrong, we can only wait till the repercussions come biting at us. That’s why when we choose to make life, it should be in complete regard of all of humanity, those we shall meet and know and those that we shall never meet and never think about.

The summary is that we are all important, important to each other, to our race and what we think, say and do, affects all and then affects us.

Differences

Right now the only deference between you and I is that at this hour,22:42 in a village in Mbale, right below the Elgon Mountain, I have sat down to write this article. But that is what life is all about, differences. Today and at this very hour, there are many differences being created. A student, writing their last exam, a young woman making up her mind on who of the suitors to spend all her life with, a baby determining that she needs to cry, a husband deciding to confess to his wife of an adulterous affair and those many other differences that are being created.
When we stand in the crowds of the day, we easily isolate ourselves from the rest, from all that is going on around us. We identify ourselves by what we are not as observed from those around us. We have a small voice that helps us know by what is absent in us but present in those around us. But when we are alone, we see clearly, we are not a measure of what we are not but of who we really are. We are the person laying in that bed, seated at the computer reading this article, we are who we really are regardless of what is around us.

I have found that it is many times very difficult to isolate ourselves from the crowd and the comparisons that it presents to us. In that realization I have grown to know that we only make those comparisons, not because we know ourselves or the people we compare ourselves against, better, but because we are trying to understand ourselves. We are searching for ourselves in those around us, in what is and what is not in them. We are in the process of processing us. The journey can sometimes be very depressing until we truly get to know as we should.

But there are times when that comparison is in fact an attraction to something we believe ourselves to be. There are times when in those around us we see ourselves, a fraction of us that may be hidden or unattended to and we seek to associate with them with the hope that we shall express or experience ourselves in the abilities that they present before us. We are indeed drawn to ourselves and we want to tell ourselves about ourselves but we only use them as a means of doing this and we are wrong, because all that they will ever tell us about is themselves.
I have learnt that people are constantly in the process of telling us about themselves. The way we talk, what we talk about, how and with whom we talk about it, the way we walk, eat, and laugh and all those other human activities are ways of talking about us. In them we shall see the differences among us; we shall learn that in our differences, none becomes better than the other, but simply different. When a man tells his wife that he loves her, when he happily carries their daughter, when he yells at her, he is telling her about himself. When we think to ourselves, those thoughts that only we know, we are telling ourselves something about ourselves. Even the thoughts of anger against someone, or love or hatred, we are simply telling the rest about ourselves.

That’s why it’s very important for us to be quick to listen and slow to respond. Because not many conversations have the motives of the speakers open for all to view, only when we listen and consider the matters presented do we clearly get understanding of what was being communicated. Greater than understanding the main points and communicating them, is the need to clearly get the motives passing in those points. When we listen to people searchingly, with undivided attention and not just the waiting for them to stop talking so that we can join in, we shall be better people.

But this starts when we realize that other people are also very important and not just us and our opinions. I have noticed that many times we are only listening to ourselves and not the other person. It’s a form of disrespect that we exhibit and we don’t even realize it because we are so absorbed in ourselves.

Back to the differences being created. We are not only in the process of creating differences among us and other people, but also in our very lives. We should seek to make a difference in our individual lives by purposing to be better each day. And I have seen how easy this can be when we look at the lives that we meet and realize that more important than getting the difference and the similarity, is getting the lessons that are so rich in them. That will very well happen when we set our heart to value people and be consistent in this commitment. Then and only then shall we learn to make the most important difference, the difference that we make in our lives.
And this is simply what it should lead to, the ability to think through the other person and use what we understand and well in making the relationship we have with them better.

If We Looked

When I wake up many mornings, I realize that am alive and many times I say a brief thank you to the God of my life. If you are like me, that realization comes to you almost every day although you realize it differently. For some people it’s manifested by thinking of the many things that they have to do that day, the breathing of a spouse beside them, or the sound of the birds dropping into their ears. We all have s a way of realizing that we are alive for the day. This realization presents us with another, even more important, realization, the fact that we all are pulled or pushed or both by something. The reason for our awaking each morning. Many times we celebrate this pull or push, we are proud of it, there are also days when we don’t, when we simply loath it.

But there are people that we come across and we wonder what keeps them going. They seem so helpless down there at the bottom of the life chain. Sometimes I find children they are growing behind the very curtains of civilization and normal development. To me they seem oblivious of the very factors that affect their existence, the politics, the entertainment, the education and health and those other factors that have shaped life as the rest of us know it. Young men who have summarized their own lives to the nature of lives that their fathers that have lived. Women that are ignorant of the fact that the beauty of a woman can be better revealed, who go around their business without paying any business to their appearances or conduct. And the so many things that surround those societies.

When I look at those people I am saddened by how little their chance at life is, I can almost tell what type of men the boys will be by just looking at their fathers and the comparison is very disheartening. In those moments I realize just how many opportunities I have had all my life and how worse it would have been if we were in the feet of those that we tower above. They are so different in time and opportunity and the difference creates almost two separate worlds.

Life as we know it can be very varied, from one location to another. When we find societies that have nothing appealing to us, men and women whose lives, whose comfort we would give all to avoid, we are forced to reflect on our lives. But do we ever wonder why these people seem so happy in the pits that we assume they lay, do we ever see the hope in the eyes of the children, the need to please in the eyes of the young men and women? I think we don’t, I think we are so absorbed by the nature of our own lives that we have not found beauty in those lives that we deem inferior to ours.

The truth is that the men in those communities also, find the women attractive, and that the young fall in love, the women also wonder if they are still attractive to their men and take the effort to raise their children in the way that’s right. When we think of life is beautiful on any coast as long as we set our hearts to see the beauty that comes to us every morning and in the day.

There is beauty in work greater than money, there is satisfaction in a woman greater than her beauty, the confidence of a ready and steady companion and helper, and there is joy in raising a child greater than making a lawyer out of them. You see my friend, and then I realize that the rest of us have skipped the safe point of true happiness, the point where we just have to look where we are and derive all the satisfaction. We are upset by the small things, like the internet being slow, while they celebrate the smile of a passing friend, a salutation of a loved one and those small components whose power over our lives is so great.

If we care to look at people and that which surrounds them with a searching eye, we shall learn to appreciate them; we shall learn to realize the presence of God close by. The hug of a dirty child can be so worm when we realize the purity and eagerness with which it’s given. Our lives are easily touched with love and beauty if only we dropped all the complicated standards that we have created around us.

So when you next visit a poor neighbor and the water in served in a broken cup, look up in her face and you will the happiness with which it’s given and you will understand her motives for giving the drink. You will realize that while that’s all she had, it’s not all she has given, she has given her happiness, her attention and that’s what makes her special, the need to give beyond her means.

The moral of this writing is simply this, we are al human and we are all special and that we can see it in all people when we chose to.