The wealth of Hassan Joho, the Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Blue Economy, and Maritime Affairs, and former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo has long been a topic of speculation. Many have linked their substantial fortunes to the narcotics trade, fuelling ongoing debates and conjecture. Both have vehemently denied any involvement in such activities.
But how did the two really become billionaires?
Hassan Joho’s Journey
According to Joho, he made his first million at the age of 20. Recounting his entrepreneurial journey, the CS shared how his grandmother, a tailor, inspired and sharpened his business acumen.
“My late grandmother used to make vitumbua every afternoon. She would prepare them through the night and start making them at around 3 p.m. I would help hawk them, and that’s where I became a really good salesperson,” he told Churchill Show host Daniel Ndambuki.
Joho, who performed poorly in his Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams, worked part-time during school breaks at the Old Port, loading and offloading scrap metals from trucks.
It was during this period that he learned the intricacies of importation, clearing, and forwarding, including the documentation required. This knowledge set the stage for his breakthrough.
“My first transaction that changed my life was when I was just 20 years old. I remember getting a clearing and forwarding job and receiving a Sh6.6 million cheque. That was the first time I saw such money, and I thought, ‘This is it,’” Joho shared in a 2022 interview.
The CS put his wealth at Ksh2.36 billlion.
William Kabogo’s Journey
Like Joho, Kabogo also found his fortune in Mombasa, where he began working at the age of 22.
“I started working at the age of 22 in Mombasa, and I have worked very hard all these years,” the former Kiambu County boss said. “I am one of the real estate developers in Kenya. I don’t brag about what I do, but really, I don’t engage in that [illicit] business,” he explained in a 2018 interview on Citizen TV’s JKL show.
Kabogo’s big break came five years later, at the age of 27, when he ventured into the car importation business.
“I made my money in the 1990s. I used to sell cars. My last shipment was over 100 cars from Japan. If you’re making Sh100,000 on one car, how much is that?” he shared.
He didn’t stop there. Kabogo later became a supplier for the now-defunct Nakumatt Supermarket.
“I used to supply Nakumatt with goods, but I was not a shareholder. It’s good for people to think I’m fabulously wealthy. In Kiambu, people see a building and immediately say, ‘This one belongs to Kabogo,’” he remarked.
