This is the story of a faithful man, a broken-down truck, a bicycle, and what God can do through servant leadership when integrity is placed in a position of influence.
When our Uganda Director, Frank Tibagendeka, first stood for the chairmanship of Mayuge District, the equivalent of governor over a region of more than half a million people, he did not arrive in a motorcade.
He arrived on a bicycle.
Our ministry truck had broken down, so Frank pedaled from rally to rally the same way so many in Mayuge travel: on two wheels, under his own power, eye-to-eye with the people he hoped to serve.
The community recognized something in that image. The bicycle became his campaign symbol. It was not a slogan dreamed up by consultants, but an emblem chosen by the people for a man they already knew.
And they did know him.
For years, through the programs God has built in Uganda, Frank had quietly served the poor of Mayuge: feeding children, educating orphans, drilling wells, and opening a medical clinic. By every political measure, he was a dark-horse candidate. He even lost his own party’s primary.
But the people of Mayuge would not let him go. They formed their own committee, funded it from their own pockets, and rallied behind him as an independent.
Against a well-known, well-resourced incumbent, the man on the bicycle won. The reason was simple: the people trusted his integrity.
Five years later, Frank has completed his full term and formally handed over the office. His official handover report reads like a quiet answer to prayer.
We want to share just a glimpse of what God accomplished through his leadership, far beyond the walls of our campuses and across an entire district.
Education opened wide.
During Frank’s term, primary school enrollment in Mayuge climbed dramatically, and secondary enrollment expanded significantly through community outreach, new classrooms, and teacher recruitment. In a district where nearly half the population is under 18, helping children stay in school instead of being drawn into labor is everything.
Children were protected from labor.
Under Frank’s council, two child-labor bylaws were passed in the sub-counties of Imanyiro and Busakira and ratified by the District Council. These are formal legal protections for children in fishing and trading communities where exploitation is common. This is the very heart of what Peace Gospel labors for, now written into local law.
Clean water came closer to home.
The average distance a family had to walk for safe water was cut nearly in half, from one kilometer to about 600 meters. Functioning water sources rose to 95%, and access to clean, improved water reached nearly 97% through borehole rehabilitation, spring protection, and new piped-water extensions.
Health care became more reachable.
The distance families travel to reach a health facility dropped from eight kilometers to five as clinics were built, renovated, and upgraded. Immunization coverage improved, maternal health indicators advanced, and new ambulances were added to help carry the sick and laboring mothers to care.
And the wider community flourished.
Roads were rehabilitated. The District Council Hall was completed. Crop production rose. Adult literacy grew. Awareness and reporting of domestic violence increased as more victims found the courage and the channels to come forward. Tree-planting and wetland restoration began to heal the land around Lake Victoria.
These are not the achievements of a politician chasing applause. They are the fruit of a faithful man who carried the same heart into public office that he carries onto our campuses: a heart for the orphan, the laborer, the thirsty, the sick, and the forgotten.
We are deeply proud of Frank. For five years he stewarded a public trust with integrity in a place where corruption is too often expected, and he used every ounce of his influence to lift up the poor. He has shown the people of Mayuge, and all of us, what servant leadership looks like.
Above all, we give thanks to God for this story! It was his divine hand taking a humble servant on a borrowed bicycle and setting him over a region of more than 577,000 people. Isn’t it just like God to use a broken-down truck to reveal a man’s character to an entire district?
So we thank God for using Frank to bring clean water, schooling, healing, and protection to children far beyond anything our campuses alone could reach!
“Whoever is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much” (Luke 16:10). Frank has been faithful. We thank God for him, we honor him, and we rejoice with the people of Mayuge.
Now, as Frank steps out of public office, he also steps away from the modest governor’s salary that helped give his family additional support during these past five years. This month, several of his children have school and university fees coming due, and we would love to bless him in this transition.
Our goal is to raise $3,800 to provide scholarship support for Frank’s children as he returns more fully to ministry leadership with Peace Gospel International.
If Frank’s story has encouraged you, would you prayerfully consider making a gift today? It would be a meaningful way to honor a faithful servant who has given so much to the children and families of Mayuge.
Please help us reach the $3,800 goal this month for Frank’s family scholarship fund.
The image of Frank riding from rally to rally on a bicycle still moves us! It says so much about the kind of leader he is.
If you only have time to give one special gift this month, we hope you will consider making it in honor of Frank and the faithfulness he has shown.