NAIROBI, Kenya Dec 27 – Even in the final months of his life, Cyrus Jirongo was relentlessly pursuing big-ticket business opportunities across the continent with friends eulogizing him as a businessman who had an instinct for unconventional deal-making.
Former Nairobi County Clerk Philip Kisia offered rare insight into Jirongo’s last known business pursuits, describing him as a go-getter who refused to be slowed by bureaucracy.
Kisia said that in October 2023, Jirongo was keen on venturing into a corporate credit business in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and sought his help to secure high-level meetings.
“We were to schedule a meeting between his delegation and myself to meet President Félix Tshisekedi. But I took too long using formal channels, and Cyrus became impatient,” Kisia said.
What followed, Kisia said, was typical of Jirongo’s style. According to Kisia, Jirongo bypassed protocol altogether, securing the appointment by meeting the Congolese leader’s mother and striking up a conversation in Kiswahili.
“The next thing I saw was Cyrus signing an MOU with President Tshisekedi at State House in the DRC. That’s how he got the appointment. I failed flat using formal channels, but Cyrus got it done,” Kisia said.
The account echoes tributes paid earlier by former Jubilee vice chairperson David Murathe, who described Jirongo as a big thinker capable of crafting multi-billion-shilling ideas with little more than a pen and paper.
Murathe said Jirongo was simultaneously exploring projects ranging from Libya’s post-conflict reconstruction to large-scale real estate developments in Ruai and carbon credit initiatives in the region.
“Cyrus worked out big, big deals some real, some in the sky,” Murathe said during a requiem mass. “But give him a pen and paper and he would craft a multi-billion-dollar deal.”
Those close to him say Jirongo’s expansive vision often placed him ahead of his time, with ambitions that stretched far beyond Kenya’s borders.
Long before he became a familiar figure in Kenya’s political arena, Cyrus Jirongo had already built a solid business empire, according to close associates.
The Former Lugari MP died on December 13, 2025, following a fatal road accident along the Nairobi–Nakuru highway.
The once-powerful businessman was driving his Mercedes-Benz car when he collided head-on with a bus. He was 64.
Jirongo ranked among Kenya’s most influential political operatives and businessmen at his peak in the early 1990s, rising rapidly during the KANU era as chairman of Youth for KANU 1992 (YK-92).
Beyond politics, his name also became synonymous with large-scale real estate developments, high-value land holdings, and some of the most protracted property disputes in Kenya.
Fred Amayo, a longtime friend and confidant, described Jirongo as a man whose success predated his entry into politics.
“By the time I met Jirongo before we started YK92, when he was just in his late 20s, going to 30s, he had already built Hazina Estate. He was building Kemri Estate. We were on site in Saika Estate. This getting into politics is what has caused Jirongo all these waves right through his life,” Amayo said.
Amayo also dismissed claims that Jirongo’s wealth stemmed from political office. Rumours were rife Jirongo became filthy rich and amassed wealth during Moi’s time. He, however, ran into financial woes and legal battles, including bankruptcy declarations.
“Jirongo was already a successful man before he got into politics. And those who are propagating these stories that he made his money from politics, I know for a fact that when Jirongo was a member of parliament, he never even spent a shilling out of his salary as an MP. It used to go to the people of Lugari,” he added.
Philip Kisia, another close associate of Jirongo, echoed Amayo’s account. Beyond politics, his name also became synonymous with large-scale real estate developments, high-value land holdings, and some of the most protracted property disputes in Kenya.
“He was an astute businessperson. He had made millions of shillings before joining politics. If you ask me, I think politics destroyed my brother Cyrus. Cyrus made no money from politics. But rather he lost. So, and thank you, my brother, Amayo, for making that clarification,” Kisia said.
An unprecedented intersection of political influence and aggressive property development defined the career of the former Lugari MP and Cabinet Minister.
While his proximity to power initially fueled a meteoric rise, it eventually led to a catastrophic financial collapse characterized by massive unserviced loans, state repossessions, and decades of legal warfare.
At the heart of his business empire were Sololo Outlets Limited and Kuza Farms & Allied Limited, entities through which he orchestrated major housing and land projects that would eventually become the subject of protracted court battles and debt recovery efforts.
