Prisons officer rewarded with Arsenal match ticket
Michael Segwaya, the Absa Bank Uganda Chief Finance Officer shakes hands with Eric Baleteirewa, who won a VIP ticket for two to watch Arsenal vs Everton in UK on May 19. PHOTO/GEORGE KATONGOLE
What you need to know:
On Thursday, Baleteirewa was announced as the lucky winner of an all-expense paid trip to the UK to watch the game.
Tickets for the final game of the English Premier League game between table leaders Arsenal and Everton are like gold dust. Paying fans will have to pay the average listing price of £1,132 for the available 1,610 tickets to watch the final day game on May 19, 2024 at Emirates Stadium, but for Uganda Prisons officers Eric Baleteirewa, this dream and other perks will come for free.
On Thursday, Baleteirewa was announced as the lucky winner of an all-expense paid trip to the UK to watch the game.
He was among the 40 winners selected from the campaign dubbed "Win your ticket to glory" that ran between December 2023 and January 2024 encouraging Absa customers to use the Visa card facilities available at the bank.
The clients that had the most number of transactions were selected. Other winners were rewarded with Shs200,000 worth of fuel.
According to David Luyima, the Card Issuing officer at Absa Uganda, all participants had to do was to use their Absa debit or credit card (online or at a POS) to be eligible to win an all-expenses paid, three-night VIP experience in the UK to watch a live Premier League game.
Absa encouraged clients to use Card Send, a quick and secure feature, that lets customers transfer funds from the Absa Debit or Credit Card to other Visa cards, both locally and internationally.
Excited
Arsenal are front-runners but they face stern competition from the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool if they are to lift the trophy for the first time since the 2003/04 season.
However, this does not matter to Baleteirewa who wants to enjoy the experience.
Baleteirewa explained that he was excited by the opportunity to watch the game stressing he was looking forward to the visit.
"Being lucky doesn't come every day. I am happy that the chance is mine to be in this position. I will be in the Stadium and root for Arsenal because they have a good form," he said.
Luyima, who says he has been banking with Absa for 13 years, will also tour the New White Hart Lane Stadium, one of the most modern stadiums in the UK.
Absa has tapped into the great appetite of English football among the Ugandan fans, even bringing to Kampala the prestigious EPL trophy in 2015.
