Millionaire: Lucky Kashaari peasants’ son scoops 180m/-
Jul 18, 2003
HE was named winner of Uganda Lotto’s sh180m jackpot two days ago but the latest millionaire undergraduate, Daniel Nuwagira, is yet to come to terms with his fortune.
By Geoffrey Kamali
HE was named winner of Uganda Lotto’s sh180m jackpot two days ago but the latest millionaire undergraduate, Daniel Nuwagira, is yet to come to terms with his fortune.
In fact, when he first heard the news, he collapsed in his room in Mitchell Hall, Makerere University where he is pursuing a BA Social Sciences degree.
His friends looked on helplessly but were relieved when the tycoon woke up the following morning.
Receiving his cheque at the Uganda Lottery Company (ULC) head offices in Kampala yesterday, Nuwagira was still sweating, trembling and breathed heavily.
The son of a peasant in Kashaari, Mbarara district, grinned throughout the press briefing and stole glances nervously in all directions as if he was not yet sure he had won the bounty, or afraid someone might pounce on him and grab the fortune.
Nuwagira is the second-last born in a family of 10. Later he said he was relieved the money was safe in Standard Chartered Bank.
As Florence Naiga, the state minister for the elderly and disabled, handed over the cheque to him, his hands were shaking, unable to believe what was happening to him.
“I am extremely happy and excited beyond words. When I heard that I had won, I fell down and collapsed.
I slept until the next day when I came to (Lotto offices to) confirm,†he said.
Nuwagira is a double lucky man. A Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) assistant commissioner for indirect taxes, Stephen Mugoya, said the prize money would not be taxed.
He said URA would only tax a 10% on ULC revenue. “I have consulted widely the Income Tax Act, Sections 5, 16, 19 and 20 but it does not say such prizes are taxable. But I advised the winner to put it to better use where we’ll collect the taxes,†Mugoya said.
Other officials at the function included ULC general manager, Lu Ruijun and two Standard Chartered Bank officials, who later led Nuwagira to open up an account where the money was to be deposited. ULC is one of the bank’s many clients.
Nuwagira said he casually paid sh2,000 for two tickets at Roxy Video Library in Kamwokya on Wednesday.
“I had gone to St. Andrews SS to look for a part-time job there, but I was told the directors were not there. On my way back, I decided to buy two tickets,†he said.
His investment did not let him down. One of the tickets turned out to be the jackpot winner while his second ticket fetched him sh5,000.
He said he would throw a party to celebrate his success, “then cool down to think of how to invest this very big money.†He said he initially hoped to earn a living later from his academic success.
An army of reporters camped at
the ULC offices for over two hours, waiting to see the lucky student. When he arrived, they shouted, “Nagaga attuse! (Behold, the tycoon).â€
Ruijun said the jackpot was evidence that the lotto game is based on luck, justice transparency and efficiency. He said the next guaranteed jackpot would be sh100m.
HE was named winner of Uganda Lotto’s sh180m jackpot two days ago but the latest millionaire undergraduate, Daniel Nuwagira, is yet to come to terms with his fortune.
In fact, when he first heard the news, he collapsed in his room in Mitchell Hall, Makerere University where he is pursuing a BA Social Sciences degree.
His friends looked on helplessly but were relieved when the tycoon woke up the following morning.
Receiving his cheque at the Uganda Lottery Company (ULC) head offices in Kampala yesterday, Nuwagira was still sweating, trembling and breathed heavily.
The son of a peasant in Kashaari, Mbarara district, grinned throughout the press briefing and stole glances nervously in all directions as if he was not yet sure he had won the bounty, or afraid someone might pounce on him and grab the fortune.
Nuwagira is the second-last born in a family of 10. Later he said he was relieved the money was safe in Standard Chartered Bank.
As Florence Naiga, the state minister for the elderly and disabled, handed over the cheque to him, his hands were shaking, unable to believe what was happening to him.
“I am extremely happy and excited beyond words. When I heard that I had won, I fell down and collapsed.
I slept until the next day when I came to (Lotto offices to) confirm,†he said.
Nuwagira is a double lucky man. A Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) assistant commissioner for indirect taxes, Stephen Mugoya, said the prize money would not be taxed.
He said URA would only tax a 10% on ULC revenue. “I have consulted widely the Income Tax Act, Sections 5, 16, 19 and 20 but it does not say such prizes are taxable. But I advised the winner to put it to better use where we’ll collect the taxes,†Mugoya said.
Other officials at the function included ULC general manager, Lu Ruijun and two Standard Chartered Bank officials, who later led Nuwagira to open up an account where the money was to be deposited. ULC is one of the bank’s many clients.
Nuwagira said he casually paid sh2,000 for two tickets at Roxy Video Library in Kamwokya on Wednesday.
“I had gone to St. Andrews SS to look for a part-time job there, but I was told the directors were not there. On my way back, I decided to buy two tickets,†he said.
His investment did not let him down. One of the tickets turned out to be the jackpot winner while his second ticket fetched him sh5,000.
He said he would throw a party to celebrate his success, “then cool down to think of how to invest this very big money.†He said he initially hoped to earn a living later from his academic success.
An army of reporters camped at
the ULC offices for over two hours, waiting to see the lucky student. When he arrived, they shouted, “Nagaga attuse! (Behold, the tycoon).â€
Ruijun said the jackpot was evidence that the lotto game is based on luck, justice transparency and efficiency. He said the next guaranteed jackpot would be sh100m.