Matiba passed on yesterday but many people don't know the story of Kenneth matiba and ambitious, fearless politician who was also a great entrepreneur .
Here is his story from rags to riches and back to poverty again.
In 1961 Kenneth matiba then aged 31 was nominated as permanent secretary in ministry of education, he became the youngest permanent person to have ever being appointed to the position.
Shorty after that he quit and joined Kenya breweres, he was later nominated to Kenya tourism board where he learnt alot about the hospitality industry.
Matiba later ventured into the industry with hotels in Diana beach, he also built prestigious schools for the rich in the society which he named Hillcrest schools
In no time he became a billionaire who nearly registered a cargo airline in 1969 but government rejected the move and also the aviation denied him licence.
The project could have costed a whooping 65000 euros which is approximately 10 million at current exchange rates .
Matiba who nearly became president in 1992 was a billionaire in a young age.
He did not take part in 1997 elections and this is where his problems began.
After 1997 he became the central figure in opposition.
But how did he lose the billions in investment?
Here is how it went down according to the standard. .
A huge part of his investment has been disposed of since early 2000, when Barclays Bank demanded the settlement of debts exceeding Sh1.8 billion. The family lost control of Carbacid Limited and then proceeded to sell shares in the company worth over Sh400 million.
The family also sold the Hillcrest schools after they were put under receivership in 2005 due to Sh620 million owned to Barclays Bank. And in 2011, the family sold The People to a company linked to the Kenyatta family.
By 2014 when he was in hospital ailing matiba was poor and could not afford medical care yet he was once a respected billionaire with vast investments in various sectors.
