Lira’s list of who is wealthy

Ojok Okullo, Jimmy Obar, Johnson Ocol, Dubai Olobo, Gunya Okwir. The list extends to a few others. At a glance, this list may look like any register. Not so in Lira, where these names have become models for material success. The owners of these names control the multi-million shilling businesses that have transformed Lira from a small town in 1987, to a commercial powerhouse. It began in 1988 when the town was thronged by hordes of desperate internally displaced people. Most had been dispossessed of their cattle by Karimojong warriors. The loss amounted to over sh20b. Cattle census statistics of the district show that in 1985, there were over 200,000 heads in the district. The 1989 census shows there was less than 10,000 left. The loss turned out to be a blessing in disguise. A cow was an idol among the Langi people. It was a symbol of wealth, which is why Langi accumulated large herds. Then the Karimojong warriors came and carried it all away. The result was mass poverty, so bad that pigs were accepted for bride price. If the Karimojong brought misery, nature made a generous compensation. There was a bounty harvest of sesame in the years after the raids, in Lango. It coincided with the upsurge in the sesame price on the world market, and liberalisation of trade in Uganda. Soon, the town was a beehive of commercial activity, bringing in big names like Amirali Karmali (Mukwano) and Salim Saleh. Buildings began sprouting like mushrooms. New houses soon filled empty streets and alleys in the municipality. That was the beginning of the brisk business tempo that now distinguishes Lira. From a war torn town in tatters, ten years ago, Lira is now ranked the second fastest growing town in the country, after Mbarara. The national celebrations of the World Habitat Day will be held in Lira this year, partly in recognition of these developments. Lira Municipality now boasts of housing a regional depot for Coca Cola, a regional office of Multichoice TV and four FM radio stations, among other regional offices. Lira has three groups of rich people. The first are those who grabbed departed Asians property between 1972-1980. This group have Idi Amin to thank for their fortunes. There are men of the town’s old money. Most were hawkers and petty traders before Amin expelled Asians in 1972. One of them, after occupying a former Asian property is said to have been overwhelmed by a modern housing gadget. Story has it that he once rushed out of a toilet with trousers unbuttoned, having been frightened by the roar of the toilet flushing System. Among the first group who survived the strong currents of the business World is Dennis Alip. He owns a string of shops and filling stations. Another is Olet Elyak, who has big stakes in the transport business. Another one is George Atyam who owns prime property in town. The second group, to which Sam Engola, Lira Movement Chairman belongs to, made their fortune between 1980-1985. Beneficiaries of political patronage, these groups went into the reconditioned cars business or sold commodity paper allocations from Government parastatals for a difference. The third group are the new rich who made their money mostly in the 90s. One of them, Jimmy Obar, is said to have started by hawking roasted groundnuts. “We do not steal Government money to build. What you see here is my labour,” he said gesturing at his storied building. Obar owns at least two commercial houses in Lira and controls a big share of wholesale trade in the town.