moses's profileThis lifePhotosBlogListsMore ![]() | Help |
This lifeIt is not the days in your life, but the life in your days that matters. How much life do you have? |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The links here listed might be helpful to somebody interested in knowing more about Uganda or keeping abreast
|
Thanks for visiting and feel free to leave a comment behind.
|
November 24 Another Day of Waiting I still haven't heard from the New Vision about the fate of my job. I probably will travel to Lira tomorrow morning to sort out a few things and move back to Tororo or Kampala by Friday. I really need to put the New Vision behind me and move on with my life but the HR department seems to have this whole thing hang over me for a while; for whatever reasons. I have spent today searching the web and applying for jobs. I have also take some time to visit our plot of land down the lake at Katabi, Entebbe that gave me an opportunity for a brisk walk with my niece Ziporrah. I have just go back and I am headed home to be with Emmy who is quite a handful. November 23 Living in "Limbo"It is nearly two weeks now since I was suspended from work and have been therefore formally unemployed. I have spent much of the two weeks back home in the village doing some simple farm activities and beautifying where I live. There it has been quite a quiet time for me with few telephone calls but with a busy schedule of physical activities that ranged from slashing, planting, jogging, weeding, sawing, painting, trimming and sweeping. Sometimes I gazed at the moon or the rain when it interrupted my schedule. I hardly went to town except two occasions to read mail. I have also had time to take care of my dogs and re-organize the position of some things in my compound like the dog pen, garden seats and lights. I have been handicapped by finances though; on some of the improvements I had planned do on the cottage ahead of the Christmas holiday that will see Emmy and the expectant mother home for two weeks. Finding casual labor around the village has also been quite
difficult and I have had to do much of the work at home single handed. I have employed
my nephews a few times but they are just unfocused and unreliable; always
having one program or the other of their own that causes inconsistency in
reporting to work. Their way of work just does fit with my style neither my
schedule. They seem to have forever to do some of these earthly chores. I wish they could just begin to appreciate the value of time. To them, the saying that time is money seems to be too remote and neither have they considered that tomorrow will soon be yesterday and they will be older than they could imagine. Look at me! My whole head is nearly grey now and it seems like yesterday when I was a boy just like them. Sometimes, I look at my son and imagine that I waited too long to get him into this world. It should been much earlier when I was still with plenty of energy and “time.” Well, I have lots of catch up to do for him now. Anyway, I have been told by some colleague or former colleague if you take it that I have already been sacked, that New Vision tends to handout dismal letters at end of month rather mid, just like resignations tend to take same pattern. I came over to Entebbe yesterday expecting to hear from the New Vision today but the day is nearly up and yet to hear a thing as far my fate is concerned. Anyway, I have been told by some colleague or former colleague if you take it that I have already been sacked, that New Vision tends to handout dismal letters at end of month rather mid, just like resignations tend to take same pattern. If no communication comes through today, I might travel to Lira tomorrow morning to pick up some of my personal effects and move on with my life instead of living in limbo. ![]() November 18 FinallyWhat I had feared could happen to me is finally here. This afternoon I received a call from somebody from head office informing that a decision had been taken to dismiss me. He, ineffect told me that my career with the New Vision is over. I have been sacked, he implied in that terse manner. Well, I am still waiting for the official dismissal letter and what is said therein. November 12 ChangeToday is another day for me here in Kampala. It has been a cool calm day and I have met quite a few interesting people since I started off from Entebbe in the morning.
I took a motobike taxi from home to the commuter taxi stage for Kampala in Entebbe town and the rider charged me seven hundred shillings instead of the usual one thousand. At another taxi stage in Kampala, I was conteplating buying a sweet for myself to while the time on my way to head office to meet the Human Resource Manager and my supervisior but a lady who sat next to me bought two sweets and gave me one. What a coincidence and kind act in the morning. We were heading to same direction but she alighted before my destination. I went along with my supervisor to meet the human resource manage who presented me with a letter to sign and told me that I am to appear before the disciplinary committee for a hearing tomorrow at 2pm following report by audit dept on the accident my official car was involved in. My supervisor was asked to be around but he declined saying that he will be starting hsi leave tomrrow. He instead asked his deputy to stand for him. I too was asked to come along with a representative e.g a lawyer to witness the hearing. I have decided, though, to go it alone and let justice take its course. Our meeting with HR manager was pretty short and I went out to town to do some window shopping as I mused about what the future holds for me after the New Vision. Talking about the future,; a preacher on a local TV station preached about change on his early morning show called Insight for Living. He quoted that popular saying that "The future has the tendency of arriving an annouced or too soon." The other memorable thing he said was that human beings have a natural tendency to resist change yet change is good even if it comes in bad circumstances. He also quoted Roman 8.28 as word of encouragement to believers in Christ who might be apprehensive of change. He also quoted Ecclesiates when he said that there is a season for every thing and indeed there is a season appointed for change and we can only embrace it with a positive attitude if we want to be better off. I was encouraged by the preacher's words and my positive attituted was strengthened and was quite prepared for the day. Probably, that may be why my day was much calmer that I expected it to be. I was given in effect a suspension letter because I aske to stay away from work pending the hearing and a decision that will taken after the HR meeting next Monday. I very well know that the letter that I was given today is a prelude to my being shown the exit from the New Vision after 13 years of faithful service. Thank God, thugh, that the future has come to me while I am wide awake and I welcome the change even though I am not certain of what will be. However, the change may come along with tough times ahead but I am certain good will come out of it all. November 11 My Times I have been away from work for eight days that I spent doing other kind of work
at home in the village. Put another way; I have on a short leave or vacation as
our American brethren would have it. I took a break at the peak of investigations into my car accident amid a lot stress and it has been good for me so far that I had that break from work. I have been able to quite a bit in the village in preparation for my retirement or sacking, whichever comes first. I have also had time to do a lot of physical exercise in doing task like weeding my garden, sawing wood, pushing the wheelbarrow full of soil and manure. Naturally, there has been some time spent with my parents, neighbors, friends and dogs. I have had lots of time too with the radio listening favorite programs on the BBC and local Fm stations. I did not miss a day too with my Bible and had one Sunday to preach the word of God. My sleep often came fast and in one stream. The moon was shining bright nearly all the nights that I spent home that created a routine for me of taking a walk around the compound with the dogs before going to bed. I often walk up early by 4.30am, stretched, prayed, read my Bible, took some porridge, brushed and got started with my day's schedule. I did some jogging before setting about work in the last three days home in preparation for the MTN Kampala Marathon due on November 22nd. I reported back to work in Lira today, having left Tororo by bus yesterday. It has been quite a day for me at the office with lots of story being told to me by various folk around about the investigations by the audit department into my car accident and rumors of my imminent sacking and lots of intrigue. Well, that to me is a settled matter because I have passed the worrying or guessing stage many miles back and I am on to the future after The New Vision with or without the sacking or the pardon. I have one of the senior auditors attempt to block my transport refund but in vain, reportedly because I crashed my official vehicle. I wonder if that is standard practice or official policy in the New Vision? Well, today too there has been a hold up of my petty cash voucher by one of the auditors who investigated the accident. I wonder if that too has to do with the accident or does it portend worse for me at the New Vision? Anyhow, I will traveling to Kampala tonight at 12.30am by bus for the monthly sales meeting on Thursday morning. I hope to spend Wednesday afternoon and evening with my family and travel to Tororo Friday afternoon or Saturday morning to follow up on some of the work I left pending. I am likely to travel back to Lira on Sunday afternoon depending on what the management of New Vision has decided about my fate following the car accident and the subsequent investigation into by the internal audit department.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|