A day in life of a motorcycle mechanic

Isaac Ssejjombwe also popularly known as “Munamasaka” is a mechanic and owns a workshop which repairs motorcycles in Namugongo. He has been doing this for the last eight years. He works from Sunday to Sunday. He told Youth Blitz what his typical day is like.

“I wake up at 6.00 am and recite a short prayer hoping for a good day and God’s blessings,” says the 32 year old mechanic who dropped out of school after O-levels.

Ssejjombwe is married and has three children. The oldest is 10 years while the youngest is three. He checks on his children before leaving his house.

“I arrive at my workshop which is about a kilometer away from where I stay. I clean the place, prepare my tool box and wait for what lies ahead,” he says.

Usually, he says, he attends to his first customer at 8.00 am.

On a typical day, he says he works on at least 10 motorcycles.

The busiest period of the day is between 10 am and 6 pm.

“At this time there are many motorcycles on the road so some are bound to develop mechanical problems,” he says.

He says the major reason why his business is thriving is because he is trustworthy and tries to do an excellent job.

“Many mechanics want to get quick money yet they do a shoddy job. I try to give each job my best because that is what brings me customers,” he says.

He retires home at 7.00 PM to prepare for another day.

Besides the workshop, he also deals on spare parts of motorcycles which he buys from Kampala.

Ssejjombwe says he did not go to any vocational school to learn mechanics. He was tutored and mentored by a brother of one of his friends who operated a small workshop in Nyendo, a busy town in Masaka district. That is why they refer to him as “Munamasaka.”

“After my O-level my father did not have money to push me to A-level. Since I always admired being a mechanic I went to a brother of one of my friends who gave me basic skills in repairing a motorcycle,” he says.

After about a year, Ssejjombwe felt that he had acquired enough skills to strike out on his own.

So in 2016, he left Butambala and settled in Namugongo at his sister’s place.

“I told my sister my dream of starting a workshop and she was supportive. She gave me Shs 500,000 which I used to buy basic tools like spanners and to pay for small space in front of a shopping complex,” he says.

Since then he has not looked back.

From the fruits of his labour, Ssejjombwe has bought a vehicle, a Toyota Raum and bought a small piece of land in Ssonde, Namugongo on which he hopes to construct his house. He has also educated his children.

Challenges

The biggest challenge his says are customers that fail to pay after he has done the work.

“Some of them are friends whom I have known for a long time but they don’t want to pay even after providing them with a service,” he says.

Secondly, he says the high taxes imposed on spare parts sometimes make it hard for him to earn good money.

“I want to expand my workshop and buy additional goods but I can’t because of taxes,” he says.

Advice

Ssejjombwe advises young people to be trustworthy and love what they do.

“Young people want quick money. I see it with some of the young people I train and employ. After one month, they want to leave and go make money yet they still have a lot to learn,” he says.

He urges government to come out and help young enterprising people by organizing for them seminars on business management and providing them with seed capital.

Many young people have great ideas, some have the skills but lack just capital to start their business. This is where government can come in and help,” Ssejjombwe says.