He has built himself a grave, owns over 300 suits and 450 ties

qTO many, life is like an onion, you peel it and tears roll from your eyes. It is one long struggle dogged by misfortune. But to others it is an adventure, punctuated by memorable experiences. Rabbi Mulondo belongs to the latter. With a plushy grave and over 300 elegant suits, he is certainly extraordinary. And he has lived an extraordinarily successful and eventful life.
The old folks in Kyaliwajjala on the out skirts of Wakiso believe he is a remarkable man. After all, they witnessed his emergence from the debris of poverty to the pinnacle of success.
75-year-old Samwiri Gitta, a retired civil servant, has known the Rabbi for over 50 years, since they were neighbours in the 1950s. Gitta saw Mulondo shifting from a small hut to an enormous mansion. He was there when the wheels of fortune catapulted Mulondo from oblivion to the limelight.
“Mulondo was the first man to buy a radio in Kyaliwajjala in the 1950s. Not many people had radios then. One had to seek permission from the Post Master at the General Post Office (GPO) in Kampala, before buying a set,” he recalls. “All programmes were broadcast in English from Nairobi.”
Gitta says people filled Mulondo’s compound and talked animatedly about the white man’s mysterious talking box.
“Some stood by the windows while others sat in the house.”
Today Mulondo resides in Ntebettebe, Bweyogerere. His residence, an impressive one-storey red tiled building, is covered with a fresh coat of light yellow paint. Inside, the rooms are stylishly furnished. Adjacent to the building, is a large swimming pool protected by white rails. It is 65-feet by 25 and 9 feet deep. Next to the pool is a shade with green iron-sheet roofing.
Here, the Rabbi lives with his wife, a cook and a houseboy, in a cloistered world of an exquisite lawn and courtyard.
In this guarded, ‘gated’, tranquil enclave, the evil pleasures of the city, seem miles away and Mulondo feels at home in his kingdom.
Sitting in his reception area, a small room with panes in the windows and a set of cushioned chairs, the elderly man gives me a few glimpses into his life.
“My son,” he smiles. There is something engaging about the smile.
“Let other people who know about me tell you. If I tell you my story, it will be like boasting about my achievements. I don’t want to see my name in the papers.”
Finally I managed to steer the conversation on to the subject of my interest. I begin by saying that he has assisted many underprivileged people. He laughs softly and asks.
“Who told you?”
Then, he gives me an overview of his life. His friendly voice is husky and his warmth, contagious. I find his story more appealing each passing minute.
Mulondo is about 6 feet tall with short-black hair and he is getting flabby due to age. He is dressed in grey trousers with suspenders, a white T-shirt and open toed sandals. The Rabbi is a good talker and the flow of his words is almost unstoppable.
Much before fortune smiled on him, Mulondo was an accountant at the Police headquarters in the parliamentary building. He lived in a small thatched house in Kyaliwajjala. Everyday, he rode his old bicycle to the workplace. It was so old that the inner tubes often burst.
“I used to repair the punctures with sisal strings. I simply tied where the punctures were, with the strings, so I had to carry a bundle of strings in my pockets.”
When Uganda got independence in 1962, Mulondo armed with a diploma in accountancy, began his ascendancy to prominence. He joined the immigration department as a senior immigration officer. In 1966, the Kabaka of Buganda, Sir Edward Muteesa fled the country. Mulondo got into trouble. He was accused of giving the Kabaka a passport. Mulondo was put under house arrest for 5 years. Thereafter, he was cleared of all charges. Mulondo decided to retire in 1971. After the expulsion of the Asians in 1972, he became the general manager, East African General Insurance (EAGEN).

Mulondo achieved great wealth and fame and he was, by any measure, one of the most successful figures in the country.
Once he acquired wealth, he lived in the lap of luxury. He bought and built magnificent houses, drove luxurious cars and furnished his house with elegant furniture. He also invested in several wardrobe classics and entertained lavishly. Mulondo had a chauffeur driven Benz to take him everywhere. His driver wore an immaculate navy blue suit, a cap and a pair of gloves.
Much to the surprise of many people, Mulondo commissioned contractors to design and build his grave. The grave, modelled on the late president Jomo Kenyetta’s, is at Mulondo’s ancestral burial ground in Namataba.
“His ‘eternal house’ is an architectural triumph,” says one of the builders who prefers anonymity. “We constructed it for one year. We used 100 bags of cement to make its concrete roof. Every sack of cement was mixed with a sack of sand. The grave can last for over 1000 years. I think it is over sh200m”.
Is constructing one’s grave not weird?
“No,” says Mulondo matter-of-factly. “Sometimes it rains when people are being buried and water flows into their graves. I see no reason why that should happen to me. After all, I have been blessed with health and wealth.”
The grave is 9-feet long, 4 feet wide and 7 feet deep. Its lid weighs about 3000 pounds (about 1362kg). It is adorned with first class marble. Beside it, is his sweetheart’s grave.
Mulondo has lived an opulent and glamourous life. He was arguably the smartest man in Kyaliwajjala. Even his severest critics concede that he was a smart dresser. Everyday he wore another suit and tie throughout the year.
“He had over 300 elegant suits and ties. Mulondo was very smart and proud,” remembers Ronnie Kijjambu. “I saw him in the 80s when I was working for Soccer World, a KCC sports magazine. He was the managing director of East African General Insurance (EAGEN). Mulondo was an ardent supporter of Express FC, a local football club and he was its patron.”
He kept his clothes in a large built in wardrobe with shelves and rails for hanging them on. The Rabbi had and still has a special room for only clothes and there are over 450 ties in it.
Mulondo, Kijjambu says, strolled majestically with his chin up as if he was at war with the world.
“He always felt a glow of pride in his achievements,” says Kijjambu. “He was very proud and he loved luxurious things. His penchant for luxury was only matched by his generosity.”
His generosity greatly endeared him to people. Every Friday afternoon, the poor went to his house for handout. He did not only help individuals, he also contributed to community projects.
Mulondo built a church, St. Francis Church Basirika, next to his house in Kyaliwajjala and furnished it. He also helped to build many other churches. No wonder he was named Rabbi in January 1977. Besides, his immaculate Benz was always there to transport wedding couples free of charge.
Religious leaders, pastors and other opinion leaders sometimes converged at his house for lunch and dinner parties and the feasts were a sumptuous affair-platters of chicken and meat, rich desserts and countless bottle of beverages.
Mulondo’s generosity was legendary. For many years, his car, a Nissan Cedric with tinted windows, transported children to their schools for free and also brought them back after classes. The Cedric was the only model in Kampala.
“The car was dubbed Twenyige (let us squeeze in). It was always full of school children, but others often struggled to squeeze in. Some sat on others’ laps,” says Gitta. “He transported children from 1968 to 1998.”
Most people concur that Mulondo has lived an extraordinarily eventful life.
In 1993, when Pope John Paul II visited Uganda, Mulondo was asked by the bishop Kawuma to buy a chair for him.
“I bought a special chair on which he sat at Namugongo. I still preserve it in a glass case as a souvenir in my church,” says Mulondo with obvious pride. “If another Pope comes, he will sit on it.”
Mulondo has also hosted the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. George Carey. He had lunch at his home. When the Archbishop arrived in Uganda, former Archbishop, Livingstone Mpalanyi Nkoyoyo took him to Mulondo’s home.
“Dr. Carey visited Uganda in 1998 and I took him to Mulondo because the Rabbi loves the clergy and has contributed much to their welfare,” remarks Nkoyoyo. He says he first met Mulondo in 1975.
“Mulondo loved religion and he often assisted the clergy. He contributed money for building churches and gave financial assistance to people involved in church work. There are very few people with his heart,” Nkoyoyo says.
Rabbai Mulondo is a fascinating man. When the local authorities wanted to exempt him from paying graduated tax, he dismissed the idea.
“How can I stop paying tax like a corpse?” wonders Mulondo. “I refused and I am always the first to pay. My ticket is number one every year and I pay in advance.”
The Rabbi is a propertied man and still commands a considerable following. When the Kabaka of Buganda, Ronald Mutebi, wanted a posh and rare vehicle for his wedding, his officials contacted Mulondo. He lent them his automatic Lincoln with a 4600cc engine, registration number UAB 002C. The Lincoln is not an ordinary one. It is a ‘Signature Series’ and has only moved 3000 miles. It could be the only model in Africa.
Rabbai Mulondo is married and in their twilight years, the Rabbi and his wife have grown very attached to each other—he calls her maama (mother) and she calls him taata (father). Little wonder that his marble grave is next to hers with a passage that connects them. Rabbai Mulondo and his wife have been together for about 50 years.
The couple has more than six children. Three girls and a boy are in America. Others are in Britain, one girl is in Sweden and some are in Uganda.
Mulondo speaks highly of his children, especially a girl in America with a doctorate in law. “She is very intelligent, she wins most of her cases. If you insist on writing about me, she will fly from the States and sue you.”
Shortly, he tells me about his son in America called Ssemakula Samwiri Mulondo.
“He is known as Samite in New York. Samite is a contraction of his name. He is a renowned musician.”
In his leisure time, the rabbi loves ploughing through water. Swimming is a consuming passion with him. It has dominated his life from childhood to adulthood.
“I began swimming at the age of 14 because I lived near the pool at Namirembe. I was dubbed sailor by my friends because of my swimming prowess.”
A smile, I note, lights up his features as he asks,
“How many people of my age can swim?”
“Not many,” I reply quietly.
“I swim for 1 hour from 12.30 to 1.30 p.m. everyday.”
His childhood friend, Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa, former President of Uganda, confirms that Mulondo has always had a liking for swimming.
“He lived a few hundred metres from my father’s house in Namirembe,” says Binaisa. “My father was the vicar of Namirembe Cathedral. We used to swim together in the pool at Namirembe. He was a very bright and pleasant boy, very well mannered and friendly. He went to Mengo while I was in Buddo. We met at least four times every week.”
The third in a family of 8, Mulondo was born in Ndejje. His childhood friend, Binaisa, is now 84. Mulondo’s father Eriya Taggwako Serunjogi was an evangelist. He impressed on his son the importance of worshipping God, a concept Mulondo never abandoned. The boy emerged from his youth with a deep sense of Christianity only matched by his expensive taste.
He is reportedly the first Ugandan to introduce lunchtime prayers in 1973.
“We used to meet for prayers every Tuesday in the EAGEN boardroom. At first there were only four people. Eventually the number increased. People came from various denominations including Catholics and Protestants. Even some Moslems came for prayers,” 80 year old Richard Mulinda, a retired Insurance broker says. “Some people claim we were forced by Mulondo to pray but that is not true. It was voluntary and we loved it.”
Mulondo’s recipe for success is working hard and faith in God.
What is the Rabbi’s outlook on life that guides his behaviour?
“The first duty of a man is to live, to live 100 percent and not 20 percent,” he observes. “One must eat well, sleep well and live well. I read that in a book entitled Will Power in Business when I was still a young man.”
Has the Rabbi lived 100 percent?