This feature was originally written by George Mulala, a renowned photojournalist who now resides in the US:
Banks are like that lousy Auntie of yours who asks for her umbrella as soon as it starts to rain.
Why?
I will tell you but let me first digress.
Kenyans obsession with owning land and houses is almost a public crisis. A Kenyan who has access to 2 or 3 million shillings will not start a small business in a small town near his village. He will buy overpriced land in one of Nairobi’s numerous slums.
Why I became a conman when I first moved to US – David the Student
Back to my story. I am a living example.
In 1999, I was busy taking care of my family, paying my share of the national debt, and often contributing to my clan’s burial association. In short a model citizen.
Kenya had Moi. A model dictator too. If you didn’t please him you ran out of favour. That is exactly what happened to Cyrus Jirongo. The National Bank remembered they had loaned him money. They wanted it back. Not next week, now.
He couldn’t pay. So his estate Saika Estate was repossessed. That’s how I came to own a three bedroomed house on Kangundo Road. The appetite for houses!
6 years later, the digital age took my photojournalist job. The National Bank turned to me and asked for their house back as I couldn’t pay the monthly premiums. I lost whatever I had put into it.
Meanwhile Nitesh, a guy I went to school with in Nakuru was still working at his dad’s shop. He earned something like 20 or 25k. Since he lived at home with his parents. he saved quite a bit of that.
When Safaricom shares went public in 2008, he put all his savings in shares. Lady luck smiled at him!
I got another job and bought land (more land urrrrg) and built a house in the city in the sun. Villagers who go to the cities to work should be advised to invest better.
As we speak today, Nitesh doesn’t own he rents a home but the dividends from his Safaricom shares have started him an export and import company. He is a wealthy Kenyan.
Me? I have children…..and Facebook followers.