Discipline, Integrity Key to CPA Success, Muchelule Tells ICPAU Scholars

The future of Uganda’s accountancy profession will be shaped not by comfort, but by discipline, integrity and consistent effort, CPA Stephen Muchelule, Manager of Business Risk Services at Grant Thornton Advisory, East Africa Limited, has said.

Speaking as Guest of Honour at the unveiling of Cohort 7 of the ICPAU Student Scholarship Programme and the launch of the 8th edition at Protea Hotel by Marriott Kampala Skyz, Muchelule challenged scholarship beneficiaries to treat the opportunity as the beginning of their professional legacy.

“Today is not just about names being read on a list. It is the launch of your professional history,” Muchelule said. “You are the future accountants of this country, and you have a duty to protect the image and integrity of the profession.”

Muchelule, who clarified that he was promoted to manager in October last year, said the scholarship should be viewed as a transfer of confidence and belief, not merely financial support.

“Opportunity comes once,” he warned. “A scholarship is a transfer of confidence, value and belief in your potential. What you do with it depends entirely on your commitment.”

Drawing from his experience as a CPA tutor, Muchelule shared a story of a student who had failed Advanced Tax three times before eventually passing against the odds.

“Out of 95 candidates who sat that paper, only 16 passed—and he was among them,” he said. “That moment reinforced to me the power of discipline, guidance and persistence.”

He urged the beneficiaries to embrace time discipline, noting that everyone has the same 24 hours each day.

“Every delay in life is expensive. Every act of procrastination has a cost,” Muchelule said. “Every paper you postpone extends your struggle and limits your future.”

According to Muchelule, success in the CPA journey requires deliberate planning and sacrifice.

“Success is not born from comfort. It is built quietly, through discipline,” he said, adding that early morning hours were often the most productive. “Waking up at 5:00 a.m. may be uncomfortable, but that is where success is often built.”

He cautioned students about distractions, particularly social media. “Social media can either build your future—or silently destroy it,” he said.

Muchelule outlined what he described as the Four Cs of a great accountant: competence, character, consistency and courage.

“Integrity is non-negotiable. It is the signature of a CPA,” he emphasised. “Without integrity, nothing else matters.”

He also urged students to avoid what he termed “survival mode” in their studies. “Do not aim to survive with 50. Aim for 100,” he said. “Survival is dangerous; excellence is safer.”

Touching on emerging challenges in the profession, Muchelule warned that ethics were increasingly critical in the age of artificial intelligence.

“You must be trusted by systems, institutions and society,” he said. “Earn that trust through genuine preparation and performance.”

He concluded by calling on parents, guardians and friends to provide emotional support to the scholars, while urging the beneficiaries to honour the opportunity through results rather than words.

“Do not announce your scholarship,” Muchelule said. “Demonstrate it through excellence.”

The ICPAU Student Scholarship Programme, introduced in 2019, has so far supported 70 beneficiaries and covers registration, examination fees and study materials for the CPA course. Cohort 7 beneficiaries are scheduled to sit their first examinations in May 2026.