Marhum Safder Virji Walji
Listen to this obituary in Gujarati
1928-2016
Sabdu, as he was generally known, or Safder Virji Walji, sometimes mistakenly known as Safder Jamal Walji, was a key partner in one of the most prominent business families in Uganda before 1973, called Jamal Walji and Company Ltd. He became an orphan at the age of 9, and this had an everlasting effect on him. He had four brothers, Marhum Pyarali, Marhum Raza, Asgherali (In Canada), and Mohamedali (in Karachi), and had two sisters, Zehrabai and Rubabbai. All the brothers and their many cousins from the Jamal family were instrumental in handling different aspects of the business. Mr Akber Jamal was at the helm at the time, and he took over the responsibility to look after the family and train them in the business.
Safder Walji, in his youth, was a genius in his studies, especially in Maths. After classes at school, a lot of students would come to him asking him for help as they all knew he was excellent at solving complex problems. One day, the headmaster of Kalolo Secondary School, Mr Ravel, went to the head office of Jamal Walji personally to tell Akber Jamal that Safder Walji was very bright and should apply to a University in the U.K. He got admission to Oxford with an all-around scholarship to study medicine and become a doctor, but he was not able to take up this offer because, unfortunately, four days before coming to the UK with all his bags packed, Akber Jamal’s brother, Mamubhai Jamal, passed away. Sabdu was asked to stay and take over Mamubhai’s role in the business, and go to study a year later. Unfortunately, that opportunity never came, since the family business and its rapid expansion took up all his efforts.
In the Book “Plantation and the Politics of Sugar in Uganda by D.P.S. Ahluwalia” a study was done on Uganda. It states that there were only six families that came from India with their own capital, namely, Jamal Ramji, Jamal Walji, Noorali Hassam Jamal, Rejram, Madhvani and Mehta and were capitalised at more than £400,000 in 1960. It’s good to know that three of the above are from our community, and all six families were instrumental in the growth of the Ugandan economy up to 1972 before the exodus.
The Jamal Walji family had bought their first farm (Coffee and Tea) of 20,000 acres in 1955 for 50 million Uganda Shillings and sold it in 1962 to the Mehta group for 80 million Uganda Shillings, which was supposed to be visited by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II after her Nairobi Tree Top visit. The farm was bought from Buchanan, a British multinational, which was offered to Mr Akber Jamal by the then Grindlays Bank Manager in Uganda, who was a friend of Mr Akber Jamal. Mr Akber Jamal was very passionate about farming, and he trained Safder Walji in his footsteps.
It was the Jamal Walji group that started the first Dairy Farm in Uganda by importing 1,500 cattle from Holland, which became the largest dairy farm in East Africa. This was only possible because of the efforts and persistence of Akber Jamal, as Kenya had the monopoly of supplying milk to Uganda, and no one was allowed to start a dairy farm in Uganda.
Jamal Walji Group also held a Ranch of 12 sq km holding 10,000 cattle at the time of the Amin Exodus from Uganda. This Ranch was the biggest in Africa. Sabdu was involved from day one in the negotiation of the farm and the expansion of the group. He was a master in accounts. He could study the accounts in a short time and advise if the business was worth investing in.
His capacity to learn and improvise was amazing. He also had tremendous stamina. For example, while at the farm, he would walk miles in the morning and could analyse the condition of the crop and be able to advise due to his vast knowledge on that subject. He put tremendous effort into expanding the business with Akber Jamal and Pyarali Walji. Safder Walji was known to be devoted to family businesses; he worked with passion and love towards the extended family business.
In his foresight and wisdom, regarding the drive for independence in Uganda in 1960, Mr Akber Jamal, with Pyarali and Safder Walji, decided to diversify their investments abroad. They set up a textile mill of 25,000 spindles and employed 1,000 people in Pakistan in Partnership with the Jetha Gokal family (well known in our community) in 1962, before the independence of Uganda in October 1962. They further set up a Jute mill in 1968, making Jute bags for agricultural produce, employing 4,000 people via a Publicly Quoted Company, Indus Jute Mills Limited, on the Karachi Stock Exchange. Still passionate about farming, the group ventured into setting up a sugar cane farm in Karachi. The Karachi operations were managed by Pyarali and Safder Walji’s younger brothers Raza and Mohamedali, Akber Jamal’s brother’s son Jaffer Jamal and his sons Hassan and Mohamed. Akber Jamal himself migrated to Karachi in 1968. It is difficult to find such bold families in our community even now, and their efforts must be acknowledged.
In Uganda, Safder Walji put all his efforts into expanding into ranching, dairy farming, coffee and tea plantations, and the sugarcane estate. His knowledge was very sharp, and he would wake up at 4 am to do research. He would not comment on anything until he had fully researched the subject by reading, and only then would he comment with full knowledge. In fact, before the exodus in 1972, JW owned 1,000 acres of Sugar Cane Plantations, a Blanket factory, a Socks Factory and held a few Real Estate properties. His employees respected him very much and called him “Babu (Father)” since he would very humbly have a meal with them to discuss the farm’s operations.
In 1972, all Asians were given 90 days to leave Uganda. The group left behind their dairy farm, ranch, sugar cane and coffee plantations, blanket factory, socks factory, trading stocks, real estate, cars, trucks and all the bank balances only to return in 1991. It is then that Shiraz, who was managing a $200 million hedge fund in Abu Dhabi, was asked to move back to Uganda by his father, Pyarali.
In London, Safder Walji loved to read the Qur´an and was a very close friend of Mulla Asgher, whom he discussed for hours on Hadith, the Qur´an and the life of our Prophet Mohamed (Saw). He also devoted hours to reading and had an interest in Philosophy. He was a very intelligent and knowledgeable man and could discuss current issues such as Politics, history and Religion. Sabdu also believed and practised what the prophet had said that one must do good for the family, and this is why he put his whole heart towards the family business.
I first saw him, a tall, handsome man, when I was 11 years old, when I visited Kampala, where on their dairy farm – he rode a horse very well. You don’t hear of Khojas riding horses now, so by riding one then in 1963, he showed me that his thoughts and interests were way ahead of the community he was a part of. He was a very strong and fit person who walked for 4-5 miles daily. He was a keen sports participant, enjoying many sports like swimming, skipping (he could do 3,000 skips in one go!), water skiing and fishing or hunting, and took great care in his daily diet, emphasising to eat fruits and vegetables. Once in Dar-es-Salaam, he was swimming and was taken far out to sea by the tide, and he came back after 8 hours of continuous swimming! You would call that very brave.
I want to quote two stories to illustrate what a great person he was.
Shabbir Somji, who managed the Sisal Estate that was purchased in Misimbo in Tanzania in partnership with my family (Fazal Rawji) summarised him as a great person who was a Philosopher, Businessman, and Farmer all in one. He gave this example of his acquaintance.
Sabdu would go to the farm once a year to visit this Sisal estate. So, he came one day, we cooked a big meal for him, and he sat at the table and looked at the food that his wife had cooked. Then he said, “I can’t eat this – just get me some fruits only”. Shabbir said, “We were so embarrassed as we didn’t have any fruits at home!” Anyway, they organised some oranges and a couple of other fruits, and he had fruits only! The next morning, after breakfast at 7, we sat and hoped to have breakfast of eggs and fruit, and we were hoping to go and see the farm. We had discovered at breakfast that he had got up at 4 am and walked 10 kilometres round the farm and had seen the whole crop! The whole crowd was amazed that a rich person, a director of Jamal Walji, did not use the car to go around the farm and walked all by himself without any help. At the office, later that day, he talked about everything from politics to religion and headed back to Kampala. His capacity to concentrate and not get tired despite his long travels was commendable.
Those who know that his elder brother, Pyarali, died in 1993 (24 years ago), and they were best friends and would support each other’s views and helped to build and rebuild the Kampala business. Pyarali ran the trading arm of Jamal Walji, known as Jamal Walji Ltd. Within a short time, Jamal Walji Ltd became the strongest and the largest wholesaler of textiles, importing from as far as Japan and holding many agencies of textile houses from abroad and from East Africa. Pyarali was very social and handled all the charity for the group. He would help people of all communities set up shops all over Uganda, giving them goods on credit and helping them to become business owners rather than being employed.
All people coming from upcountry would stay at JW guest accommodation, which was below the JW House. Safder Walji used to say that a bag of flour would last only three days because as many as 20 people would always be accommodated daily and food provided, that the ladies of the household cooked every day without any cost to the visitors who would come to do their purchases to the capital for their upcountry shops.
One important factor that also made Jamal Walji prominent in all communities in Uganda is that they were the custodians of money for all the people who came from upcountry and from the people within Kampala. In those days, people would not trust or be educated enough to put money in the bank due to the paperwork. They would trust the Jamal Walji safe, which was embedded in Jamal Walji Ltd premises on Alidina Visram Street. This eventually led Pyarali to develop the business of Exchange, taking money locally and giving it abroad. Pyarali also served Kampala Jamaat as a Treasurer for many years and was also a treasurer of London Jamaat for a couple of years when he migrated.
Pyarali, with Marhum Habib Walji, Marhum Hussein Jamal and Marhum Hassaanli Dharamshi were the pioneers in establishing the first Mosque of our community at Hammersmith. Pyarali also played an important role in the purchase and renovation of our Stanmore centre. Jamal Walji was also extremely instrumental and donated heavily to the Jamaats all over the world and especially for building flats for the community in Kampala. They have set up a trust that supports Maliya Jamaat for all its expenditure, as the family originates from there. Through the trading arm, Jamal Walji ventured into blanket manufacturing and socks manufacturing in Uganda. The liquidity for expansion in agriculture, manufacturing and charity came from the trading business that was run by Pyarali.
Safder Walji was very close to his brother Pyaru, who was a friend and a brother to him, and they would always be seen together. Pyaru’s death was therefore a big blow to him, and in many ways, his drive suffered a lot after this. After Pyarali’s demise, Safder Walji supported Shiraz, Pyarali’s son, as a friend would, not as an uncle or partner. To support Shiraz, he would visit Uganda three times a year. He would arrive early morning at 8 from London and would tell Shiraz that he wants to go straight to the blanket factory. He would go on the shop floor and study every department, taking a short break for lunch, and he would be back in the factory till late in the evening. The next morning, he would sit with Shiraz for hours and discuss the factory in detail and point out the areas which needed attention. Shiraz tells me that he was always alert and focused. Then we would also go to the farm and he would make Shiraz walk miles to see every section of the farm and advise and guide him. Shiraz has followed in his father’s footsteps in terms of trading and community service (Chairman of Kampala Jamaat 2002 and Chairman of Dar es Salaam Jamaat in 2010 onwards initiating Housing projects, Sabodo Car Park, Swimming Pool and Gym, Renovation of Kabrastan to name a few) and learned the traits of agriculture and industry from his uncle Safder Walji. Shiraz is now working on the World Federation Global Census with a team of professionals from our community. It is pleasing to note that their third generation is still operating the family farms and businesses in Uganda under the same joint family structure.
Above all, I remember Safder Walji in London after the Uganda exodus, after which he stayed in London for 43 years and died at the age of 88. For the extended family and the community of Ugandans – he was the centre of attention – at his home in Pinner we would meet and see many others who had come to see him unannounced – where many a baraza discussed many issues of family, religion and community, business, politics and so many other subjects. His mind was sharp, and he was interested in all subjects – sometimes he was in the public library reading all the papers from early in the morning. Although I have also seen him fast for many months and read the Quran in Gujarati time and again for hours on end at home.
Despite all these qualities, he was very humble and a god-fearing person, not indulging in any conspicuous consumption, living a very simple life. Right to the last days of his life of 88 years he said it was destiny that the opportunity of qualifying as a doctor did not happen. It was Allah’s plan and wishes, so he could not question God’s plans. He was a contented man and did not crave for luxury houses or cars. He was content with what God had given him.
Sabdu leaves behind his wife Lailabai, a son, Mohamed, a daughter, Masuma and two grandsons, Shafiq and Abid. All of whom he loved very much.
I want to summarise his life as he used to emphasise. Sura Taghaabon, Chapter 64, Ayat 11, which says Bismillahir-rahman-ir-rahim, “Whatever calamity befalls a person is by the leave and Will of Allah. Allah guides those people who believe in Him to bear their responsibilities with patience and perseverance. Allah knows everything.”
May Allah SWT repose the departed soul in the abundance of His mercy and rest him amongst the chosen ones – Aameen. We request our readers to remember marhum and all the Marhumeen with Sura-e-Fateha.
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