Africa-Press – Uganda. Having taught for 35 years, Jackson Mweyakye, 62, retired from teaching at Nyakatooma Primary School in Sheema District.
Mweyake started his teaching journey in 1983 as a Grade Two teacher, but he wanted more and he upgraded such that by the time he retired, he had risen to the ranks as a Grade Five teacher and a Grade One headteacher.
“I loved teaching since I was a child and that is the reason I persisted despite the hardships I went through. Many colleagues left the profession because it was not paying well,” he recalls.
Career
After completing Primary Seven in 1978 from Kyabugimbi Primary School in Bushenyi District, Mweyakye joined Bishop Stuart Teachers College in Mbarara. At the time, they were examined in three subjects; Mathematics, English and General Paper.
“To join the teachers college, one had to have excelled with a minimum of 238 marks, I scored 241 marks,” he says.
In 1983, Mweyakye’s first posting was to Kyabugimbi Central School in Bushenyi District, but since he had an anger for more, he doubled work and studies.
He was aware that teachers were in demand since finding a qualified one was hard at the time.
Jackson Mweyakye and his wife at one of the gardens. PHOTO / ALEX ASHABA.
“Headteachers would come to the college looking for us, it was hard finding a qualified teacher without a job, we were selling like hot cake,” he says.
However, even with this demand, teachers were paid peanuts and after a short time, many of them had abandoned the profession for other things that could ably pay their bills.
Between that time, Mweyakye worked at Mbarara Municipal, Nganwa Junior, Kyeitembe, Nyakaziba, Butare Central and Nyakabugo, Kashajure, Kabingo and Nyakatooma primary schools as a teacher and a headteacher in others.
Originally, he says he was paid Shs1,165 and he could hardly make savings. But things improved when he was sent to Nganwa Junior School because he did not only earn a salary but got allowances as well.
By 2004, his salary had been raised to Shs320,000.
Preparing for retirement
In 1991, Mweyakye had at least saved and bought land and a banana plantation and a farm, each at Shs300,000, he considered this a future investment.
“I decided to build a house early because I knew that after retiring, I will focus on other investments,” he says.
In 2012, he started a retail shop which was managed by his wife. He started expanding it to a wholesale store that ultimately became his source of income after retirement.
But his dream was to start his own school and true to himself, in 2016, he started making bricks meant to construct that school after retirement.
On September 17, in 2018, after 35 years in service, Mweyakye retired. He says, even when many civil servants dread the thought of retiring, he was more than ready for this journey.
“I did not panic because I had planned for my retirement very well, I had established a retail shop and had invested in land,” he says.
Investment
Mweyakye planned to start his school as soon as retiring, banking on his retirement package for things such as construction. However, none of this could happen since it took two years for the package to be processed.
In 2020, when he received his package of Shs50m, he reinvested it in his school construction; he managed to complete a few classroom blocks but then the first lockdown was effected.
“I had completed at least eight classrooms, two dormitories and an office. I had even received Primary Four and Five pupils,” he says.
The school, Jack Hill Junior School in Kyabugimbi Sub-county, Bushenyi District is now one of the many schools that are awaiting the presidential order to reopen schools. The belief is that they will receive a number of new pupils when schools reopen.
“I decided to invest in a school because I wanted a business that gives me and my family a legacy, I also want to transform my community,” he says.
Advice
Mweyakye advises those still in active service to respect their jobs and try to save and invest in different ventures for the future.
He adds that people need to think about getting a home earlier on so that they don’t have to retire when they are still renting.
Even in cases where people have to pay fees for siblings and relatives, he says they should never forget to think about themselves at some point and plan for their future.
“If I had not planned well, I would have struggled and I did not want to burden my children with taking care of me when I grow older, they too have their lives to plan for,” he says.
