From makanga to being muti-billionaires: Tycoons Who Started as Touts

MkenyaLeo.co.ke has compiled a list of some of the wealthy Kenyans who started their careers as but are currently swimming in wealth.

Oscar Sudi

Oscar Sudi is the current Kapseret MP who was recently nominated by the UDA to fly the party’s ticket in the August elections.

The MP currently lives in a Sh100 million mansion.

Before the 2013 General Election, Oscar Sudi was another faceless Kenyan hustler.

For this son of a charcoal salesman, who has earned the nickname “Sonko of Eldoret,” affluence has become the standard.

He brings money, power, and all the controversies that go along with it. And he isn’t afraid to show off his two spouses.

Grace to grass

“I was born in 1980, my parents were squatters in the Moi University area and all we had was a grass-thatched house in the farm of Mzee Kibor arap Talai who allowed us to stay on his farm but on a temporary basis.

“I used to sleep in the kitchen with my two brothers.”

“In 1994, I bought a second-hand bicycle from my accumulated savings, which helped me ferry charcoal to clients. I later sold the bike and bought a new one for Sh3,800. That year, my father had helped my mum open a grocery business at Moi University Main Campus roundabout, where I would sometimes help her,” explained Sudi, whose dad was sacked in 1995 and hence their focus on charcoal and grocery business to make ends meet.

Sudi made friends with matatu operators and began touting at his mother’s food store.

Oscar Sudi working as a tout

“The conductors became my friends and I began working as a parking boy in 1996. After six months, I got introduced to one matatu owner, Mzee Barnabas Sawe, whose vehicles were labelled Carlos,” said Sudi.

“He was paying me Sh800 and by the end of the year, he increased it to Sh1,200 due to my hard work and honesty,” he claimed.

Mwangi Kiunjuri

Mwangi Kiunjuri, the former Agriculture Cabinet Secretary, was born at Kenju village, Kangema Constituency, on April 29, 1969. He worked as a lorry driver and tout after graduating from Moi University with a Bachelor of Education (arts) degree in 1994.

He used his lorry as a public service vehicle because the public transportation sector had fewer stringent restrictions at the time.

The seasoned politician remarked in a previous interview that the transportation industry taught him how to comprehend people and their way of life.

Mike Sonko

Before he was elected governor, he represented the city in the Senate. He first joined politics in September 2010 when he was elected Makadara MP.

He later started a transport business with his wife Primrose Mbuvi. “My wife was the first proprietor in transport who imported double-decker buses post-colonial era,” he said.

Simon Kabu

Simon Kabu, who developed a tour company from the bottom up, is clearly one of Kenya’s self-made millionaires.

The creator and chief executive officer of Bonfire Adventures, in a YouTube interview with comedian MC Jessy, took viewers through his humble beginnings.

According to the man from Mukurweini in Nyeri, he grew up in a village where owning shoes was a pipe dream, but his entrepreneurial spirit never left him.

Simon’s father retired while he was in his third year at Egerton University, thereby ending the family’s financial resources.

“I had two options; to drop out of school or sort myself. I chose the second option, so I deferred
for a year and got into small-time jobs in Githurai,” he said.

Jaguar

Jaguar Starehe (MP) Jaguar is the prominent vocalist behind the iconic Kigeugeu song that dominated the radio during the 2013 and 2017 general elections. Politicians that break their promises are mocked in the song.

After enchanting the youth with his songs, Jaguar was elected MP on a Jubilee ticket in the 2017 General Election.

He owns a fleet of multi-million cars, including a Bentley, Range Rover Sports, Mercedes Benz,
Toyota MarkX, BMW 5 Series and Jaguar. He also owns a mansion in Nairobi, where he stays with his family.

He was born to a family of four and used to live in Kawangware. In his early life, Jaguar used to clean matatus and also worked as a tout.

“I worked as a matatu tout to pay my school fees,” he previously told Radio Maisha.