A plague called degree – 1

Over the next two editions, I will be yielding this column in the most part, to a Ugandan social entrepreneur, Henry Mutebe. He has so aptly captured a thought that has gone on in my mind for a long time and which I had advocated at several fora. It is our society’s predilection for a university degree as a silver bullet for life’s challenges and an automatic ticket to success. What our youths fail to realize is that the university degree is only a prequalification for the actual university, the university of LIFE. Service and value, not a paper certificate, are the keys to earning a comfortable place in the enterprise of life. Over to Mutebe. I have taken the liberty to edit the article for currency and relevance.

“Sometime ago, a friend called to check on me. It had been long since we talked. He asked if I had some time to visit him. I was happy to go. After our graduation, he started a small restaurant in town which has grown exponentially over the years. When I arrived at the restaurant, I was very impressed by the progress he had made, in what I believe to be a short time for a business like his. We shuffled through memories of our school days and had a hearty laugh.

Buhari administration’s carelessness, negligence cost Nigeria’s fortune ― Soyinka

As hours went by, I noticed that when customers entered and took their seats, he was attending to them and doing much of the serving. I asked if he didn’t have enough staff and he told me that one of the girls working at the restaurant was sick while another guy simply didn’t show up or call. So he was short of labour. I asked if I could help. He joked, ‘Henry you know I can’t afford you. You are a university lecturer. Here I pay 10,000shs (about one thousand Naira) to the attendants. How will I manage to pay you?’  I told him I was happy to work.

I quickly submitted myself to a crash orientation on customer care rules and most importantly, what was on the menu. So we started serving people that came in. After I had served about eight clients, something interesting happened.

As we bantered in-between service to customers about the crazy things we did in school, two students I taught at University (a gentleman and lady) came by. They did not immediately acknowledge that I was the one but their eyes kept preying on me to confirm they were seeing the ‘real person.’

To reinforce their disbelief, I asked my friend to let me serve them. So I went over, bent slightly, greeted them and asked to take their orders. They were very surprised and asked me, ‘What are you doing here sir?’ I told them that I was there to serve them.  They looked at each other with mixed feelings as if wondering why I would be working in a restaurant.

The girl asked, ‘Sir, but why are you working here? You can’t serve us. I mean…?’ she shook her head in disbelief before continuing, ‘…you can’t work in a restaurant?’. I told them I would serve them and was happy to take their orders. You could easily notice that they were very uneasy about placing their orders.

After a very interesting exchange, they finally placed their order which I delivered promptly. They had their delicious meal while my friend and I continued our conversation. From time to time, I checked on them and asked if they needed anything else. When they were done, my friend punched in the bill, printed the receipt and I delivered it to them.

Their bill was 24,500shs (about 2,400 Naira). I placed it on the table and took the plates away. The guy placed two notes (a 20,000 and 10,000shs) on the table and they left. I delivered it to my friend. He gave me back the change of 5,500shs which I happily slipped into my wallet.  By this time, I already had 15,000shs in tips from the other 8 clients I had served. So by adding this 5,500shs, I was 20,500shs rich already.

As the couple (my former students) went out, they each looked back in disbelief. I looked at them and waved them goodbye. My good students could not imagine their lecturer serving them in a restaurant. Since they know my work and qualifications, they could not understand how I could be in a restaurant at this time. As if it takes away my degree or other job.

A couple of other clients came in and I served them. My friend was very pleased and paid my 10000shs and a bonus of 2000shs which he says he offers once a waiter exceeds a certain number of clients.  At 11pm, I left the restaurant and went home.

As I sat in the car heading back home, I couldn’t help thinking about my students. Their disbelief was innocent; but it speaks a lot about a general problem we have in our society. These two students represent thousands of others. They made me think, very deeply, about our graduates.

I have had the opportunity to travel and study in other cultures and I have always been surprised by how people in other countries don’t despise ‘menial’ jobs. The more I have travelled, the more I have learned and unlearned.

In 2012, while at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in England, one of my classmates who drove a BMW, would park it at a restaurant and work as a waiter. He came from a very wealthy family but he still worked. He told me that as soon as he completed high school, he had to take part time jobs to earn some money to pay rent to his father and contribute to household bills. It shocked me quite a lot considering what I grew up seeing in my part of the world.

As if this was not enough, I also found out that when students finish high school in these countries, they have to find some work and either live independently, or pay their parents some money for rent if they are to continue staying in their parents’ house.  I was shocked by the idea of a son paying rent to his father. It took time to sink in. The more I interacted with more of these people, the more I realized that it is the culture. They teach a child responsibility from a very early age, not so much for the money but for service and the creation of value.

In such climes, parents teach their children that they have to work and earn. Just because your parents are wealthy doesn’t mean your life is already worked out. You have to contribute to the home bills and somehow find something to do. It doesn’t have to be white collar, but you need to find something to do.

When I went to Norway, the story was the same. Most university students engaged in some form of temporary work. Students often work as attendants, waiters in restaurants, cleaners in hotels, shop attendants, drivers, newspaper vendors, etc… continued

Remember, the sky is not your limit, God is!