By Our Reporters
City tycoon Gordon Mugyenyi is ordinarily a very big man over whom many (including political leaders) are supposed to tremble partly because of his large wallet and the fact that he often helps their electors get jobs.
His Middle East Consultants is simply one of the very largest firms that specialize in taking Ugandans for odd jobs in UAE and other Middle Eastern destinations to provide cheap labor. Odd as the jobs maybe, Mugyenyi remains a hero for many because the young people he gets jobs for are people who would otherwise have had no chance condemning them to perpetual joblessness.
This status has given him name recognition and near celebrity status in our dusty city. But Youth & Children Affairs Minister Florence Nakiwala Kiyingi doesn’t seem to be among those wanting to know or care about who he is and is connected to in government.
Today Tuesday morning, Nakiwala did what many scribes were shocked to see. She summoned Gordon Mugyenyi to her office for intense grilling which she made even more painful by allowing in the media. This exposed Gordon Mugyenyi to something that must have left him shocked to the marrow.
Nakiwala has a busy schedule but always insists on timeliness and Mugyenyi, who was expected at 11am, too kept time. On being ushered to 5th floor where the youthful Minister is officed, Mugyenyi was showed where to sit and required to begin answering tough questions with Nakiwala herself being the interrogator.
The subject matter related to a one Elizabeth Nabukeera whose anti-Middle East video (according to Mugyenyi) has been making rounds on social media for three months now. In the much viewed video, Nabukeera narrates the servitude they endure in the Arab World and claims that Middle East and another firm called Security Link are the biggest culprits orchestrating the injustice she laments about including some underage girls and boys being confined to slavery in the Middle East.
So on becoming aware of the video, Nakiwala (who Ugandan parents often confront with such problems these days having seen her relentlessness when it comes to children and youth) directed her assistants and the relevant Commissioner in the Gender Ministry to secure the appearance of much revered Mugyenyi before her.
In his response, Mugyenyi used the Tuesday encounter to explain to her how their industry works. He disclosed they have an association through which they enforce self-regulation. He added that because of their cleanup efforts, the Ugandan girls no longer suffer torture and brutal acts as was the case before. “We have been able to de-escalate such cases because of the strong collaboration we have with government ministries and security agencies. The embassies too have been very helpful,” he explained after recomposing himself.
At first he was so tensed up because Nakiwala’s barrage of questions were simply too discomforting. At some point, you would think the Middle East boss was either in the dock being cross examined to answer for criminal acts or somewhere at legendary Justice Catherine Bamugemereire’s land commission of inquiry.
At some point, Mugyenyi lost his cool and almost began addressing Nakiwala discourteously yet she is a minister that by law deserves being treated with decorum. Nakiwala (who initially caused Mugyenyi to sweat significant quantities of plasma) gradually eased up after Gender Ministry technocrats present weighed in and helped clarify some of the things which Mugyenyi had personally not brought out very clearly largely because of the belligerent mood he was in unable to believe that a mere female minister would afford being so tough on him.
He had the previous day indifferently spoken on NTV and indirectly cautioned Nakiwala to go slow on him because he is a big name local investor in the Ugandan economy. In the end, the two made a little bit of peace with Nakiwala promising a fall up meeting slated for Tuesday next week. Mugyenyi promised to answer her questions more helpfully because he will have carried out more consultation on the matter. But he insisted Nabukeera had never been their clients since her name doesn’t appear anywhere on their database (with over 10,000 names).
Mugyenyi said their list is verifiable because government and security agencies have a copy of the same. “Because as Middle East we are a big player in this business, people like her [Nabukeera] find it convenient to refer to us even when they are taken by some other individuals. In their estimation that gets government respond to their plight very quickly,” Mugyenyi clarified. But as market leaders, Nakiwala insisted, Middle East and others have a duty to make sure the image of their agencies improves both in word and deed. (For comments, call, text or whatsapp us on 0703164755 or email us on mulengera2040@gmail.com).
