Category: Business Daily

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has been blocked from demanding taxes on service charge collections by building and estate managers following a four-year dispute with Nextgen Mall Management Company.

The Tax Appeals Tribunal ruled that Nextgen Mall Management Company only handled funds as a conduit for unit owners to obtain basic upkeep services like grass cutting, security, bin cleaning, and management fees.

It ruled that the monies it held from service charges and property owners’ contributions were not earnings that should attract income tax and value-added tax (VAT), setting a precedent in an era that has seen the rise of management companies taking charge of upkeep in gated communities, office blocks and apartments.

The taxman, through the Commissioner of Domestic Taxes, had slapped Nextgen with a Sh119.8 million income tax and value-added tax (VAT) claim, dating back to 2016.

The tax obligations included income tax arrears of Sh38.5 million covering the years between 2016 and 2020, as well as VAT obligations of Sh81.3 million for the years between 2017 and 2020, bringing the total to Sh119.8 million.

The firm – established to manage the common areas of Nextgen Mall on Mombasa Road in Nairobi on behalf of purchasers of units from Nextgen Office Suites Limited, which is the developer – objected to the KRA demands at the Tax Appeals Tribunal.

This gave birth to a legal battle that has been ongoing in the corridors of justice since September 7, 2022.

A KRA audit of the firm triggered the Sh119.8 million tax demand.

KRA argued that the service charge contributions collected from unit owners constituted taxable business income.

It reckoned that the firm is a private company whose primary economic activity is real estate activities, specifically the management of Nextgen Mall, and that it was selected for audit after declaring income in its Income Tax returns while remaining unregistered for VAT.

The taxman said that the firm’s transactions attract tax because it offers services and charges a fee, arguing that it is not a passive holding company.

KRA said firms receiving service charges can only escape taxation through an exemption granted in law.

The firm maintained that it merely collects service charges on behalf of property owners and uses the funds to pay third-party service providers responsible for maintaining the common areas of the mall, including garbage collection, payment of utility bills and repair works within the common areas.

The case narrowed down to two issues: whether service charge and member contributions constituted income chargeable to Income Tax; and whether the service charge and member contributions collected attract VAT.

On the first issue, the Tribunal ruled that service charge collections were fiduciary pass-through funds held by the management company for the benefit of unit owners through settlement of service costs in the common areas.

The Tribunal added that the management company is a vehicle for owners to pool and spend their own monies, arguing that the firm offers no service on its own account, adds no margin and retains nothing as a fee.

The Tribunal noted that the company neither earned nor retained cash, arguing that the contributions cannot be treated as taxable income.

On VAT, the Tribunal found that the company did not supply management services.

On the contrary it noted that the services were being supplied by independent property managers who had already charged and accounted for VAT and therefore subjecting the service charge contributions to VAT again would amount to taxing the same services twice.

The Tribunal rejected KRA’s move that forced registration of the firm under Section 34(6) of the VAT Act on the strength of the firm having made taxable supplies exceeding the registration threshold of Sh5 million, arguing that the contributions do not attract taxation.

Consequently, the Tribunal on July 27, 2026, found that the service charge and member contributions are not a taxable supply, and that KRA erred in subjecting the fees to VAT.

The Tribunal allowed KRA to tax the company’s own incidental commercial income, such as kiosk and market stall rentals.

‘The upshot of the foregoing analysis is that the Appeal is merited and the Tribunal accordingly proceeds to issue the following Orders that the Appeal be and is hereby allowed; the Respondent’s objection decision dated December 2, 2025, be and is hereby set aside. Each party to bear its own costs. It is so ordered,’ reads a ruling by Justice Gloria Awuor Ogaga.

‘The decision reinforces the principle that fiduciary funds held on behalf of third parties are not taxable income merely because they are received and administered by a management company, providing the much-needed certainty to the real estate and property management sector,’ said Diro Advocates LLP.

The verdict brought to a close a winding legal battle that started at the Tribunal, then to the High Court in 2024, before returning to the Tribunal.

‘It is the Tribunal’s considered view that the Appellant is a conduit through which the owners pool and disburse their own monies; it renders no service on its own account, adds no margin, and retains nothing as a fee.’

Like many corporate executives whose professionalism is forged in years spent occupying the coveted corner offices of some blue-chip companies, Mwangi wa Iria joined entered politics with what appeared to be an almost evangelistic mission of transforming lives even as he thought he would help cleanse a system poisoned by corruption and ineptitude.

He drew confidence from his success at the Kenya Cooperative Creameries (KCC), where he had inherited a state corporation struggling to process milk, sell its products and pay farmers.

He also oversaw policies that helped raise the farm-gate price of milk from Sh5 to Sh30 a litre by 2006, he says.

More than a decade after he was first elected governor of Murang’a, Wa Iria is fighting to hold on to assets creditors have put up for sale, including his Karen home and a hospital.

At the same time, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission is pursuing the former governor over claims that assets linked to him were acquired from corruption. The agency is eyeing Sh542.6 million linked to contracts awarded by the devolved government of Murang’a during his tenure. The allegations remain contested.

The sad turn of events for Wa Iria, after he had painstakingly forged a suave image in corporate Kenya speaks of the murkiness of politics.

Born Francis Mwangi on August 28, 1964 in Kahuro, Wa Iria grew up in what he describes as a typical rural setting, drawing water from the river, picking coffee beans and tending animals.

He attended Kiboi Primary School and Wethaga Boys High School before joining Moi University and later pursuing further studies in purchasing and supply in the UK.

In 1993, he joined East African Breweries Ltd as a junior sales manager. By the time he left in 2002, he had risen to national sales manager, giving him experience in one of the country’s biggest consumer businesses.

His next assignment would prove more consequential. In 2002, then-Cabinet minister John Michuki identified him as the man chosen to spearhead reforms at KCC.

‘That young man has been found from this area and is none other than this man whom I have known since his childhood. I hope he won’t let me and you down in his duties,’ Michuki said at Wethaga Catholic Church.

Wa Iria rolled up his sleeve and got to the work of reviving KCC. He renamed it New KCC, revived the processor and returned it to profit-making, he told this publication.

The turnaround became the foundation of his public reputation and would later provide him with the identity that followed him into elective politics.

His tenure, however, was not without controversy. He clashed with then Co-operatives minister Joe Nyagah over the future of the company. Nyagah accused Wa Iria of giving President Mwai Kibaki the impression that New KCC was capable of remitting to the Exchequer the Sh200 million it had received for reforms, even as the government was thinking of returning the processor to farmers.

Wa Iria’s contract was not renewed in 2007.

He subsequently joined the Aga Khan Foundation as a logistics officer before resigning in 2012 to join elective politics.

Besides KCC and the Aga Khan Foundation, Wa Iria served as national sales manager at Kenya Breweries, managing director of Ngano Feeds, chief executive of Freshco Seeds and general manager of the commercial division of Industrial Promotion Services.

It is this background that helps explain the unusual way in which he approached politics.

He was a corporate executive who entered politics carrying with him the language of management, production and enterprise – particularly in agriculture, dairy and cooperatives.

That Wa Iria was steeped into politics can be explained by the fact that his home county has arguably minted most Kenya’s billionaires, including Equity Group Chief Executive James Mwangi, former Equity chairman Peter Munga, Chris Kirubi, Jimnah Mbaru, Benson Wairegi and Gerald Gikonyo.

For a while, Wa Iria too, seemed keen on following in the footsteps of these entrepreneurs.

Then he took the plunge in 2013. Wa Iria abandoned the corporate world to contest the Murang’a governorship on The National Alliance ticket.

He emerged victorious, becoming the county’s first governor. It was the beginning of a career that would keep him at the centre of Murang’a politics for the next decade.

His first term was turbulent. In October 2015, some 34 of the 49 ward representatives voted to impeach him over several allegations, including gross misconduct and abuse of office.

His biggest undoing, according to the assembly? Acting like a know-it-all CEO.

‘He carries himself as an oasis of wisdom and those of us mandated with oversight duties have no other business apart from drinking straight from that oasis with total submission,’ said Waithera wa Maua, the MCA who sponsored the impeachment motion against the governor.

Yet Wa Iria survived the storm and returned to his office the following day.

The episode also revealed the combative side of the politician.

Critics and opponents accused him of being dictatorial, arrogant and a lavish spender, while Wa Iria portrayed the impeachment effort as a scheme by rivals who wanted to derail his administration.

He survived and sought a second term in 2017 under the newly formed Jubilee Party, which was led by then-President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto, the current head of state.

Wa Iria retain the Murang’a governorship in the August 2017 General Election, one of only 12 county bosses who successfully defended their seats. Official election results show he garnered 349,904 votes.

Wa Iria’s second term increasingly became a launchpad for national ambitions.

In 2022, three years after securing his second term, he set sights on the presidency.

He became the presidential flagbearer of the Usawa Kwa Wote party, campaigning on an agricultural and household economic empowerment platform.

Predictably, his presidential campaign was centred on transforming lives through farming.

His slogan of ‘One Home, One Cow’ sort to connect his political message to the dairy industry that had propelled him to the national limelight.

His proposition was that every family should have a cow capable of producing milk and generating income. So in love was Iria with the dairy industry, that his Usawa party adopted a cow as its symbol.

But his presidential ambition never reached the ballot.

In May 2022, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission removed his name from the presidential nomination register after determining he had not met the required threshold for valid supporting signatures. Wa Iria protested at the Bomas of Kenya, insisting he had met the requirements.

By July, he had abandoned the presidential contest and endorsed Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition’s chief Raila Odinga. He even told Murang’a voters to support Odinga while seeking a place in a prospective government.

The failed presidential bid marked another turn in a political journey that had begun with a corporate executive convinced that management principles could be deployed in public service effectively.

His years in office also left a mixed legacy. Wa Iria’s administration pushed dairy development and healthcare projects, including the establishment of the Kenneth Matiba Eye and Dental Hospital and investments in milk collection and processing.

His government also launched the ‘one home, one cow’ programme in Murang’a, seeking to use dairy farming as a household income-generating activity.

But the political battles never quite disappeared.

EACC investigations have followed him beyond the governor’s office. The anti-corruption agency now says contracts valued at Sh542.6 million were irregularly awarded to Top Image Media Consultants between 2013 and 2017 and that proceeds from the contracts were channelled to Wa Iria, his household and associates.

The High Court subsequently froze properties in Nairobi’s Umoja Innercore and Mweiga, Nyeri, pending determination of the EACC’s asset recovery lawsuit.

Wa Iria and the other parties have contested the allegations. In December 2022, the High Court also allowed EACC to freeze two properties belonging to Wa iria’s wife after the commission told the court that the assets might have been purchased using proceeds of corruption.

Young people are full of energy, ideas and an unwavering belief that tomorrow can be better than today. As the generation that will inherit the consequences of climate change, they are also among the best placed to develop solutions that make communities more resilient while creating new economic opportunities.

Kenya’s challenge is no longer whether young people have brilliant ideas. It is whether the country is willing to invest in them.That question came into sharp focus last week as the Kenya Community Development Foundation (KCDF) awarded Sh31.5 million to seven youth-led enterprises through the Young Environmentalist Innovation Challenge.

Drawn from more than 700 applications across the country, the winners are tackling some of Kenya’s most urgent environmental problems with practical, market-driven solutions.

One enterprise is transforming marine plastic waste into durable school furniture. Another is converting discarded banana stems into biodegradable paper packaging. Others are producing organic fertiliser for healthier soils, developing solar cooking technologies, harvesting drinking water from atmospheric moisture, turning hazardous mining waste into affordable building materials, and transforming discarded synthetic hair into fashionable products.

Collectively, these innovations tackle waste management, water scarcity, clean energy, sustainable agriculture, affordable housing and the transition to a circular economy. They demonstrate that environmental sustainability and economic growth are not competing priorities. The two can reinforce each other.

Kenya has earned global recognition as a climate leader through investments in renewable energy and active participation in international climate negotiations. However, real climate leadership will ultimately be measured by the country’s ability to nurture home-grown enterprises that generate jobs while solving environmental challenges.

The seven winners are a glimpse of the country’s untapped potential. Behind them are hundreds of other innovators whose ideas may never leave the drawing board because of limited access to finance, mentorship, markets and business development support.

The challenge is not a shortage of innovation but absence of a system that consistently helps turn promising ideas into thriving enterprises.

This is why partnerships such as the one between KCDF and the I and M Foundation deserve attention. By combining grants with mentorship, technical support and access to networks, they recognise that successful businesses require more than seed funding.

Vision 2030 aspires to transform Kenya into a globally competitive and prosperous nation. That ambition will not be achieved by policy alone. It will be realised by young innovators who see value where others see waste, opportunity where others see crisis, and who are building businesses that protect the environment while creating livelihoods.

The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) recently published a set of guidance notes on the use of emerging technologies including artificial intelligence (AI) and privacy enhancing technologies such as encryption.

The guidelines come at a time when the adoption of these technologies is growing significantly, particularly in the private sector where investment in digital technologies has been rising in recent years.

In its guidance note on AI the ODPC acknowledges that the nature of AI systems introduce new data protection challenges that existing regulations do not fully address.

This includes the opacity of algorithmic models, the risk of discrimination from biased training data, the reduction of human oversight and the generation of predictions about data subjects without their input among others.

The guidelines are thus meant to introduce an additional layer of regulations aimed at protecting Kenyans and are a welcome development, even as some would argue they should have come sooner.

AI use has been deployed for years in the country to create consumers’ credit scores, read through employment resumes, diagnose diseases and develop hyper-targeted advertising and entertainment content.

The guidelines apply to both public and private entities that develop AI systems trained on personal data, produce recommendations or decisions based off of this data or use these technologies in automated decision-making.

They are also based on existing regulations including the Data Protection Act and the Data Protection (Registration of Data Controllers and Data Processors) Regulations and thus extend protections introduced in 2019.

On the one hand the guidelines are crucial for consumer protection as they apply to a broad swathe of entities, ranging from insurance companies to telecommunication firms, airlines, hospitals and streaming platforms.

For instance, a lending company that uses an AI-based credit scoring model is expected to test the model to ensure it does not produce adverse outcomes and provide transparency through a privacy notice disclosing the use of AI-scoring.

A hospital collecting patient records cannot supply these records as training data to a commercial AI vendor developing a diagnostic tool for commercial licensing without further assessment and legal authority.

Other guidelines also limit the length of time entities may hold on to users’ personal data used to train AI models, mandate data minimisation, accuracy, anonymisation, security and users’ consent.

On the other hand the scope of the guidelines could present an administrative challenge for the ODPC to regulate compliance.

Ride-hailing drivers and restaurants that use food delivery apps, for example, rely on AI models that are developed and deployed outside the country, with the phone apps serving as consumer touchpoints that are location-agnosic.

It is thus difficult to outline how the ODPC would go about enforcing the regulations upon firms that have no physical presence in Kenya and operate beyond the country’s regulatory scope.

Kenyan regulators have in the past struggled to enforce local regulations upon global big tech firms like Google and Facebook that cite their foreign-based offices as falling outside the purview of legislation covering Kenyan corporates.

At the same time the nature of AI deployment where companies purchase subscriptions to enterprise language learning models presents a regulatory headache for the ODPC.

There are hundreds of proprietary language learning models and thousands more on open source platforms like Hugging Face. It thus presents a regulatory dilemma for the ODPC to monitor compliance across such a large range of products and often, problematic LLM deployment will not be identified until consumers raise the flag and by that time the damage has already been done.

Nevertheless the release of the guidance note is a step in the right direction in the country’s attempt at regulating an industry that is disruptive globally and one that many governments are just starting to understand.

It further enshrines the right of Kenyan digital users such as informed consent, access to personal data collected by private companies and rights to have their data corrected and erased.

It is further an advancement of Kenya’s data protection regulation that is among the most robust in the region and sets the country ahead of regional peers in enforcing data governance at a time the industry is progressing at breakneck speed.

To ensure successful implementation, the ODPC will have to work together with entities in the private and public sector to ensure effective adoption.

The regulator will also have to reach out to other state regulators and government bodies to ensure an umbrella approach to enforcement of the guidelines. Just like laws on ethical corporate governance and investor protection are enforced by more than one regulator, regulations on appropriate AI deployment will require a multi-sectoral approach to work effectively in safeguarding the personal data rights of Kenyan consumers.

Former Principal Secretary Esther Koimett has emerged as the largest shareholder in Middle East Bank Kenya following a multi-billion shilling wealth transfer from her late father, Nicholas Biwott.

Regulatory disclosures from the bank show that Ms Koimett holds a 17.48 percent stake, making her the single-largest investor in the institution, which has roots in Dubai and was initially owned by the Al-Futtaim Group, associated with Carrefour supermarkets.

The shareholding places her at the centre of strategic decision-making in the bank, where she joined the board on February 26, 2024.

The investment cements Ms Koimett’s activities in Kenya’s private sector after nearly three decades of public service, including as PS in several ministries and CEO of Kenya Post Office Savings Bank.

It’s unclear when she acquired the top stake in the bank that Al-Futtaim Group established in August 1981, before the UAE-based conglomerate ceded ownership to locals in the early 1990s.

Ms Koimett did not respond to phone calls and text message seeking comment.

Previous reports linked her late billionaire father, Mr Biwott, to a stake in the bank amid talk that the powerful Cabinet minister in the Moi era acquired the ownership following Al-Futtaim’s exit in April 1991.

The exit of Al-Futtaim was touted as an attempt to “Kenyanise” the bank’s ownership structure. Mr Biwott succumbed to kidney failure on July 11, 2017 at the age of 77.

Mr Biwott succumbed to kidney failure on July 11, 2017 at the age of 77. Mr Biwott entered politics in 1974 – almost 10 years after Kenya gained independence from British rule – and later became personal assistant to President Daniel arap Moi when he was vice-president. Mr Moi died in 2002.

While in government, Mr Biwott built massive wealth spread across industries, which was recently passed to his heirs. He bequeathed to each of his children, including Ms Koimett, from the four wives an equal one-fourteenth share of his estate.

Other top owners of Middle East Bank Kenya are MEB Holdings (11.58 percent), Mustang Limited (10.47 percent), Baumann Management Services Limited and Good Fortune Limited, which hold 6.6 percent stake each.

The bank’s ownership structure reflects a predominantly local investor base. Disclosures indicate that local shareholders account for 90.22 percent of ownership while foreign investors hold 9.78 percent.

Ms Koimett is among the 20 individuals who hold a 20.31 percent stake in the bank that is 79.69 percent owned by 21 corporate shareholders.

Her 17.48 percent holding means the remaining 19 individuals in the lender own 2.83 percent.

Middle East Bank Kenya posted a net profit of Sh264.37 million in the year ended December 2025, marking a 22.2 percent rise from Sh216.34 million. In the first quarter ended March this year, net earnings rose 16.9 percent to Sh35.29 million.

Ms Koimett’s ownership in Middle East Bank emerges in a period when local banks have become a target for large African lenders seeking buyout deals for expansion into Kenya and to use the country as a launch pad into the East African market.

Kenya’s appeal lies in its gateway role to the East African Community, a fast growing bloc expanding by at least 5.0 percent a year.

This has placed the owners of local banks on the cusp of making outsized capital gains as big African banks buy them out for a piece of Kenya’s crowded banking sector.

Ms Koimett’s stake and directorship in Middle East Bank Kenya cements her boardroom dealings in corporate Kenya. She is currently the chairperson of M-Pesa Holdings Company and AAR Insurance Kenya, and also sits on the boards of Kenya Airways, Car and General and the African Trade and Investment Development Insurance.

Her career as head Kenya Post Office Savings Bank, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism and Information and investment secretary at the Treasury earned her the moniker: the iron lady of Kenya’s public service.

Middle East Bank Kenya was one of the 10 banks that raced to increase their capital last year in response to the decision by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to raise the minimum capital from Sh1 billion to Sh3 billion by last December.

Six of the 10 lenders, including M-Oriental Bank, Africa Banking Corporation (ABC), Middle East Bank of Kenya, CIB Kenya, Premier Bank and UBA Kenya, raised their core capital above Sh3 billion by the end of March this year.

Middle East Bank Kenya’s core capital rose to Sh3.07 billion at the end of December 2025 from Sh2.11 billion in September.

The CBK proposes to raise the capital to Sh10 billion by 2032 in what is expected to spur further consolidation in Kenya, which also ?appeals as a hub for travel and regional bank headquarters. Relatively solid financial regulation, easy repatriation of dividends and the freely traded shilling add to the attraction.

African banks have been busy dealmaking as global giants such as Standard Chartered and Societe Generale exit smaller markets to focus on core ones such as Kenya, while a growing need to invest in technology has prompted deals to gain scale.

Nigeria’s Access bought National Bank of Kenya from KCB Group in a deal that was completed halfway through last year.

South Africa’s slow growth and mature sector are pushing its biggest banks to expand elsewhere.

Nedbank agreed earlier this year to acquire a majority stake in Kenya’s NCBA as part of its regional expansion, beating South African rival Standard Bank, which operates in Kenya as Stanbic, to the prize.

South Africa’s Absa group is also increasing its stake in its Kenya subsidiary from 68.5 percent to 85 percent in a Sh31 billion deal.

Kenya’s big banks command market shares in the low-to-mid teens, while second-tier lenders, such as Family Bank, are typically in the high single digits. There is also a long tail of smaller banks, including Middle East Bank of Kenya.

The Tax Appeal Tribunal has dismissed an application by a trading firm seeking to block a Sh207 million tax claim by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), citing a failure to present signed documents in support of the case.

Extramile Company, a sugar and cereals dealer, suffered the setback after the tribunal ruled that it could not rely on unsigned pleadings to prosecute its appeal against tax assessments raised by the KRA in 2024.

The tribunal held that signatures are essential in authenticating and validating documents, as they link a legal document to a specific party or its authorised representative.

‘It is the finding of the Tribunal that the Appellant herein lacks the locus standi to advance or defend its claims based on the unsigned pleadings, thus void ab initio,’ the tribunal ruled.

The dispute arose after KRA conducted a compliance review covering the period between 2020 and 2023 and issued the company with additional tax assessments amounting to Sh207,028,556 on July 17, 2025.

The assessments related to corporation income tax (CIT), value added tax (VAT), pay-as-you-earn (PAYE), and withholding tax.

In its appeal filed on October 23, 2025, the trader argued that KRA had erred by relying on incorrect import data, sugar selling prices, and cereal purchase prices to determine expected sales based on National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) prices.

The company also challenged KRA’s inclusion of local sugar purchases in the sales calculations, the decision to tax a related-party balance of Sh37.4 million, and the apportionment of input VAT under Section 17(6) of the VAT Act.

Extramile maintained that it imports sugar and cereals from the East African market and sells them at prices determined by market conditions. It argued that its cereals, including maize, sorghum, and millet, are exempt from VAT under the East African Community Common External Tariff and the VAT Act.

The company further stated that all its sugar is imported and that it does not purchase sugar locally for resale.

The firm explained that before 2022, it did not operate a bank account and instead conducted transactions through accounts belonging to a related company, Daybreak Supplies Limited, and one of its directors, Jane Wangui Nyawira. In 2023, some imports were allegedly paid for by another related company, Alphastone Limited.

Extramile argued that its VAT claims related only to taxable supplies and that KRA had wrongly disallowed input tax deductions.

KRA defended the assessments, stating that a verification exercise revealed inconsistencies in the company’s returns.

The tax agency said it conducted stock and banking analyses using customs records, import quantities and market prices to determine expected revenue.

KRA said it compared the company’s declared sales with expected sales and identified underdeclared income.

It also disputed the related-party balance of Sh37.4 million, arguing that the company failed to provide sufficient supporting documents, including detailed agreements, invoices, and customs records.

The authority further stated that Extramile Company Ltd had failed to provide sales ledgers, purchase records, input VAT analysis, and other documents required to support its objections.

KRA also argued that the company failed to declare exempt sales in its VAT returns despite reflecting them in financial statements, prompting the authority to apportion input VAT as provided by law.

Businesswoman Mary Wambui’s preferred vehicle for State tenders has undergone several changes to its name, boardroom and shareholding amid its pursuit of nearly Sh20 billion worth of government contracts over the past two years.

Nightigale (E.A) Limited has since rebranded from Nightigale Enterprises Limited, even as Ms Wambui, once its majority shareholder, exited the company together with her daughter within two years of the tycoon joining public service.

Ms Wambui, an ally of President William Ruto, was co-opted into government after Kenya Kwanza won the August 2022 General Election.

The company went on to win public contracts worth at least Sh6.8 billion, even as it underwent a series of changes to its ownership and boardroom.

In some instances, it disclosed different shareholders for contracts awarded on the same day, according to the Public Procurement Information Portal (PPIP), the government’s official online public procurement database.

Today, Ms Wambui’s name no longer appears in the company’s registration documents. Court filings have, however, linked the businesswoman to the multibillion-shilling deals won by Nightigale, including a Sh4.9 billion affordable housing project.

Some activists have told the court that the frequent changes to the company’s ownership and boardroom were intended to conceal potential conflicts of interest. Ms Wambui has denied the allegations.

Filings at the Business Registration Service show that Edward Njenga Muniu owns 90 percent of the company, while Ruth Waithira Kinyanjui, a long-time associate of Ms Wambui, holds the remaining 10 percent stake.

Mr Muniu has little discernible digital footprint. In one of the company filings, he listed the postal address of Maasai Mara University as his correspondence address, raising further questions about his background.

It is not only Nightigale’s filings at the Registrar of Companies that tell an intriguing story about the firm.

Its disclosures on directors and beneficial owners to procuring entities, as required under procurement laws, paint an equally interesting picture.

Data from the PPIP shows that on January 10, 2024, for instance, Nightigale was awarded two separate tenders on the same day, yet disclosed different shareholding structures in each.

In the first, a Sh1.32 billion contract awarded by the Athi Water Works Development Agency for the construction of the Kandara Water Supply Project, the company listed Ruth Waithira Kinyanjui as its sole shareholder, according to records on the Public Procurement Information Portal.

On the same day, the company was awarded another tender to supply copper winding wire to the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC). This time, procurement records showed Ms Kinyanjui holding 90 percent of the shares, while Thomas Muya Njau held the remaining 10 percent, raising questions about when the changes in ownership took place.

The latest major contract awarded to the company, according to the procurement portal, is the Sh4.8 billion affordable housing project in Nairobi’s Mathare Constituency.

The contract, awarded by the State Department for Housing on November 25, 2024, listed Mr Muniu as the company’s sole shareholder.

Company records now indicate that Mr Muniu has since ceded a 10 percent stake to Ms Kinyanjui.

Earlier, on July 10, 2023, when Nightigale won a Sh500 million contract from the Kirinyaga County Government to construct County Aggregation and Industrial Parks, procurement records listed Mr Njau as the company’s sole shareholder.

The company later found itself at the centre of controversy after securing two multibillion-shilling framework contracts under the ICT Authority’s Digital Superhighway programme while Ms Wambui was serving as chairperson of the Communications Authority of Kenya.

Procurement records at the time listed Ms Kinyanjui as Nightigale’s sole shareholder.

However, that did not stop the Consumer Federation of Kenya (Cofek), in court filings, from alleging a conflict of interest and claiming that Ms Wambui was the company’s ultimate beneficial owner.

Ms Wambui has denied the allegations, while the Communications Authority has also rejected claims that there was a conflict of interest.

Cofek argued that as part of the requirement of the tenders, public employees and their close relatives, including spouses, children, brothers, sisters and uncles and aunts, were not eligible to participate.

The Digital Superhighway project is being implemented in two phases, with the first allocated Sh5 billion and a further Sh10 billion from the Universal Service Fund earmarked for the second phase.

Nightigale (E.A) Limited’s corporate history stretches back to March 30, 2012, when it was incorporated as Nightigale Enterprises Limited, about a year before the Jubilee administration came to power.

The company was initially owned by Peter Njoroge Muchoku and Grace Wanjiku Muchoku, who held 700 and 100 ordinary shares, respectively.

The shareholding and directorship changed several times over the next decade.

In 2014, Evelyn Nyambura Mungai, Mary Wambui’s daughter, joined the company as a director and shareholder alongside Ephantus Githui Gathieka. Ms Mungai exited in 2018.

In 2019, Ruth Waithira Kinyanjui became a director and shareholder after the exit of Mr Muchoku, while Samuel Maina Kariuki replaced Mr Gathieka later that year.

Mary Wambui first appeared in the company’s records on April 9, 2020, when she acquired 600 shares from Mr Kariuki and Ms Kinyanjui. She was appointed a director the following month.

Following the 2022 General Election, Ms Wambui’s daughter returned to the company as a director and shareholder after acquiring Mr Kariuki’s remaining shares.

Within a week, President William Ruto appointed Mary Wambui chairperson of the Communications Authority of Kenya. Three days later, she resigned from Nightigale’s board and transferred her 500 shares to her daughter.

In May 2023, the company changed its name to Nightigale (E.A) Limited. A month later, just before the company signed one of its Digital Superhighway contracts, Evelyn Nyambura resigned as a director and transferred her shares to Ruth Waithira Kinyanjui, effectively ending the Wambui family’s direct shareholding in the company.

Ms Wambui has long been among Kenya’s best-known businesswomen, having risen from modest beginnings to become a major government contractor, politician and influential figure in public life.

In 1996, she opened Purma Holdings Limited, a clearing and forwarding company, which gave her a start in public procurement.

Her appointment as chairperson of the Communications Authority placed her at the centre of Kenya’s digital transformation agenda while simultaneously attracting scrutiny over companies historically associated with her.

As she rose the ranks, she would later enter the world of aircraft, having registered Albatross Aviation, based at Wilson Airport.

As she established herself as a ‘tenderpreneur,’ it was reported that she earned billions of shillings supplying boots, uniform and cereals to the military and other State departments.

She was also reported to have earned multi-million-shilling deals with the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (Kemsa), including supplies linked to Covid-19 kits.

Purma Holdings, Charma Holdings, Enterprise Supplies and Evertec General Trading Company, all associated with Ms Wambui, were awarded contracts worth Sh6.85 billion for the supply of rice, beans and edible oils in 2022 and 2023 under the controversial import scheme that saw the former CEO of Kenya Trading Corporation fired.

In recent years, she has also faced financial pressure following litigation involving Glee Hotel, a property associated with her family interests.

The evolution of Nightigale-from its ownership changes to its role in major government projects-continues to attract public interest as court proceedings over the Digital Superhighway contracts continue.

Before becoming President, William Ruto frequently accused the previous administration of using agencies such as the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to target his political allies.

At the time, Mary Wambui was facing tax-related cases, prompting speculation that she was among the allies he was referring to. Antony Mwaura, who also faced legal challenges, was another figure widely associated with the claims.

Following President Ruto’s election in September 2022, several of the cases involving his allies were withdrawn or otherwise came to an end.

Ms Wambui was subsequently appointed the chairperson of the Communications Authority of Kenya, while Mr Mwaura was named chairperson of KRA, appointments that some observers viewed as recognition of their loyalty.

More recently, Ms Wambui has returned to the headlines following the takeover of Glee Hotel, a property associated with her, by Equity Bank amid a debt dispute. She has also sued Google seeking the removal of links to reports relating to past tax cases.

Mombasa-based firm Milly Glass Works Limited is lining up a Sh330.36 million pharmaceutical glass bottles plant, marking an expansion from its traditional soft drinks and spirits bottles as it seeks to tap the regional market.

The planned plant, to be developed by its affiliate Milly Glass SEZ Ltd, will be located on six hectares within the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Mombasa County. The firm targets to produce 290,000 tonnes of bottles annually.

The firm says the expansion into specialised glass packaging reflects the rising demand for high-quality packaging within the pharmaceutical sector in East and Central Africa, where local manufacturing capacity remains limited.

The Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) report shows the project will leverage advantages such as proximity to the Port of Mombasa, the Standard Gauge Railway and Moi International Airport, and a growing road network, making it ideal for an export-oriented manufacturing model.

‘The project proponent proposed the development facility based on market analysis of demand growth of pharmaceutical glass bottles and the opportunity to construct a new facility that will strengthen their existing glass bottle manufacturing facility in Mombasa,’ reads the ESIA report.

The firm explained that the proposed plant would produce type III glass amber coloured pharmaceutical glass bottles, which are used for storing, protecting, and transporting medicine. The bottles are used for liquids, tablets, capsules, vaccines, and parenteral (injectable) preparations.

Amber bottles protect pharmaceuticals by blocking harmful ultraviolet (UV) and visible light, preventing the chemical breakdown of light-sensitive medicines.

The East African Community Regional Pharmaceutical Plan of Action 2017-2027 showed Kenyan manufacturers held 30 percent of the over $1 billion (Sh129 billion) of the Kenyan pharmaceutical market, presenting an untapped opportunity for investors.

Many pharmaceutical manufacturers rely heavily on imports for glass packaging. The Mombasa-based firm aims to use the plant to shorten supply chains, cut costs for regional manufacturers and position itself as a reliable domestic supplier.

Setting up the plant in a special economic zone positions the firm to benefit from tax and duty incentives aimed at boosting industrialisation and exports.

Construction is projected to generate up to 800 direct and indirect jobs, while operations will create around 280 permanent positions, with a preference for sourcing labour locally.

Kenya’s glass manufacturing sector is growing, driven by rising demand in construction, beverage packaging, and specialised architectural applications. The industry is dominated by major players like Milly Glass Works Ltd, Ardagh Glass Packaging Kenya Limited, and Impala Glass.

Demand for container glass is projected to reach 147 thousand tonnes by 2030. This is driven by the brewery and packaging industries, according to estimates by Milly Glass.

Billy Onyango’s chiselled physique carries a story of sadness and hope. The 33-year-old believes he would either be dead or behind bars today had fitness not become his escape route.

His career was not born of ambition but necessity.

Raised in Nairobi’s Korogocho slums, where crime was a daily reality, Onyango learned early that strength was the only shield against danger. ‘The only reason I got into fitness was because of my upbringing,’ he says. ‘Had I not grown up in Korogocho, I doubt I’d have studied Fitness Science.

“Living in the slums was terrifying. I was tired of constantly living in fear. I had nowhere else to go, so I had to learn how to protect myself because danger was everywhere in the slum.’

That decision marked the beginning of a journey that would transform Billy’s body and his life.

Surviving a knife attack

In his neighbourhood, knife attacks by criminal gangs were so common that they barely made headlines.

“It wasn’t unusual to hear that someone had been stabbed. It happened all the time. Even the police couldn’t do much.”

He remembers one incident, and it became the turning point that pushed him deeper into fitness.

One early morning, a neighbour he was close with, who worked at a construction site, left home before dawn for work but never made it.

“He was attacked by a gang. He tried to fight back, and I think that angered them. After overpowering him, they slit his throat, pulled out his windpipe, and left him there. It was horrific. I even remember police officers crying when they came to collect the body.”

Witnessing such brutality left Onyango shaken.

“From that day, I knew I had to become strong. I had to learn how to defend myself. I immersed myself in anything and everything related to fitness.”

It wasn’t long before he too got tested.

Just below his left shoulder is a scar from a knife wound he suffered a decade ago. It took 28 stitches to close.

“It was raining that evening, and I had stopped to take shelter. But the rain wouldn’t let up, and it was getting dark, and knowing how dangerous our neighbourhood could get after dark, I decided to run home.”

As he approached a bridge, he was ambushed.

“Someone grabbed me from behind by the neck. Before I could react, another man came from the front and stabbed me,” he says, pointing to the scar.

“Because of the rain and the cold, I didn’t immediately feel the pain. I fought hard while applying my boxing skills. I tackled the man holding me from behind and threw him to the ground.”

The attacker quickly recovered and hurled himself off the bridge into the river before swimming away.

“The one with the knife took off immediately. When his accomplice fled, he realised I could fight back.”

By then, Onyango had started building his physique through boxing and strength training.

“If I hadn’t been that strong, I’m certain they would have seriously injured me, or even killed me. I became even more committed. I started lifting heavier weights in the gym and got into callisthenics, focusing on functional body movements.”

As his skills and physique improved, someone suggested he had what it took to become a fitness trainer.

“That idea made perfect sense to me. When the opportunity came, I enrolled for a diploma in fitness science. I had seen too much bloodshed. My mother had been attacked twice. I had survived an attack myself. My neighbour was brutally murdered. Several of my classmates and childhood friends were shot dead after joining criminal gangs.”

He admits there were moments when revenge tempted him.

“I knew some of the gang members personally, and at one point I thought about retaliating. But I realised that would only drag me into the same life I was trying to escape. Choosing fitness, and eventually becoming a coach, saved me.”

Overall, Onyango says his physique commands him some level of respect among people, including potential clients, because he looks the part.

‘I am not big with bulky muscles, nor am I skinny. I have a well-built block frame, and that has helped build me an image that attracts clients. When someone looks at me, he sees the discipline and hard work. Many men tell me they would love to have a body like mine. To just have such attractive muscles.’

Why he swears by weighted-HIIT

As a fitness coach, Onyango rarely recommends one-size-fits-all workout routines. But if there is one training method he believes delivers the greatest return for most people, it is weighted High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).

In his view, weighted HIIT mirrors the way the human body naturally moves through everyday life, making it one of the most practical and effective forms of exercise.

“Life doesn’t require us to perform just one movement at a time. When you sit on a toilet or lift something from the ground to the shelf, those are daily body functional movements. We push, pull, lift, carry, squat, and walk, often in quick succession. Exercises such as farmers carry, pulling or pushing a sledge with weights mimic body movements, and at the same time they work out the entire body because they are compound exercises that engage different muscle groups of the body,’ he explains.

The weighted HIIT training method blends strength and cardiovascular exercise into a single workout by combining compound movements with added resistance while maintaining a two-to-one work-to-rest ratio. The result is an elevated heart rate that builds cardiovascular endurance while simultaneously increasing strength and developing lean muscle.

Weighted HIIT allows an individual to train multiple muscles and body parts in one session, making it an efficient option for beginners, busy professionals and seasoned gym-goers.

It is also the best form of exercise for older age clients.

‘You wouldn’t tell a 70-year-old to lift weights or to go up several flights of stairs. Weighted HIIT prepares the body for exactly that,” he says.

According to Onyango, weighted HIIT for older adults builds strength, improves heart function, and protects bone density.

‘With older people, I prioritise joint-friendly, functional movements and mostly use light dumbbells or resistance bands.’

The effectiveness of Onyango’s weighted HIIT training philosophy is perhaps best illustrated by the transformation of a 23-year-old client who walked into his gym weighing 88 kilos and battling health complications that made losing weight almost impossible.

“When she first came to me, she was significantly overweight. She had accumulated so much fat everywhere, including around her neck. I had never seen that. She was also dealing with hormonal and menstrual complications that caused her to gain weight very rapidly. Her appearance had changed so much that many people assumed she was an older woman, and that affected her confidence too.”

When they committed to a structured weighted HIIT programme and lifestyle changes, the results came quickly.

“In our first session, I performed a body and fitness assessment on her, which is basically subjecting her to simple basic exercises to ascertain her fitness level, body mobility and flexibility before introducing a programme. After about three months, she had dropped from 88kg to 67kg. Even the excess fat around her neck had reduced drastically, giving her a much healthier appearance.”

While Onyango has helped many clients transform their bodies over the years, this woman’s journey remains one of the most rewarding.

“I’ve walked with many people on their fitness journeys, but her transformation touched me the most because I had seen how much her appearance had affected her emotionally. Being able to help her regain her confidence while also addressing the health issues that were causing her rapid weight gain was incredibly fulfilling.”

There is no bad food

When it comes to feeding your body, Onyango’s philosophy is that there is no such thing as a bad food.

“I’m not a nutritionist, but I know a thing or two about eating well,” Onyango says.

“In my view, we’ve overcomplicated food. That’s why you hear people constantly talking about dieting. Since when did eating well become dieting? Eating well is a matter of common sense. Eat enough protein, include a reasonable amount of carbohydrates and watch your portions.”

He is also critical of what he sees as the commercialisation of nutrition advice in the fitness industry.

“I see trainers charging clients a lot of money just to prepare meal plans. Diet has become another way of making money off people who are desperate to lose weight.”

Onyango believes nutrition advice should be practical, affordable and tailored to what people can realistically access.

“Your body doesn’t need expensive foods to stay healthy. Why insist that someone must eat salmon if they can’t afford it? There are plenty of nutritious and locally available alternatives such as eggs, omena, chicken breast or even njahi. The goal should be to help people make healthier choices using foods that are available and fit their budget, not prescribing meals that are out of reach.”

The deadlift is one of the most effective exercises for those looking to build strength, lose fat and develop a leaner physique. By working multiple muscle groups at once, it also improves posture and makes everyday movements easier, both in and out of the gym.

‘Deadlift is a compound movement. This means it works more than one muscle,’ he says, adding, ‘it will work the hamstrings, glutes and lower back, but the benefits do not stop at the back of the body. It also works on your core, your forearm and shoulders.’

One of the most common questions Wilson gets in the gym is, who should actually be doing deadlifts? Some assume the lift is only for bodybuilders or competitive strength athletes.

‘It is one of the fundamental movements that anyone, as long as you exercise, needs to do,’ he says. ‘Anyone can do deadlifts, from pregnant women, beginners, pro athletes, powerlifters, crossfitters…’

Choosing the right starting weight is one question Wilson often addresses for beginners nervous about getting it wrong.

‘That depends on a case-by-case basis,’ he says. ‘There are people who are naturally stronger, but a good place to start is with your body weight.’

He uses his own weight as an example. ‘If I weigh 80kg, there’s no way you can get injured with that weight. Ideally you should be able to lift at least two or three times your bodyweight whenever you’re doing deadlifts,’ he says, adding, ‘I’m 80kg, I should be able to hit around 160kg.’

But lifting that heavy or even 60 kg should never be rushed.

‘It’s really important to learn the proper mechanics before you start lifting heavy,’ he says.

So, how should a deadlift should be done properly? Wilson says form is one area of concern he spends most of his coaching energy on. He says form starts long before the barbell leaves the floor.

‘The key is to start in the right position and brace your core by taking a deep breath and tightening your stomach muscles before you lift.’

From that braced position, pick the bar upward while keeping the spine steady and controlled.

‘You want to have a neutral back as you are driving the barbell up to your mid-thigh,’ he says.

The deadlift itself is not a single fixed movement. You can choose between two main styles depending on your body and your goals.

‘The most popular deadlift is called a conventional deadlift,’ he says. ‘And secondly, we have what we call a sumo deadlift. With a sumo deadlift, you lift while your legs are wider, and you have a narrower stance, a narrower grip on the barbell. For the conventional deadlift, the grip is narrower, and your hands are just outside your hips.’

Beyond safety, how heavy someone lifts depends on what you want: fitness or muscle build?

‘If you want to train for growth or muscle hypertrophy [an increase in the size of muscle fibres], you will need to go a bit lighter than you would,’ he says. ‘Then think of doing a high volume, high repetitions. If you want to train for powerful strength, think of higher percentages of your one-repetition (rep) maximum, then fewer repetitions or less volume.’

A belt or not

He translates that into practical numbers.

‘If you want to train for maximum strength, you would stay in the ranges of five sets and three reps,’ he says. ‘If you want to train for muscle building, you want to do anywhere between 10 sets and around 10 reps.’

Beyond strength building, the deadlift also helps in fat loss and a leaner physique.

‘You can deadlift your way to both fat loss and greater strength.’

Recovery, he stresses, is just as important as the lifting itself. Muscles grow and repair during rest, not during the workout.

‘Ideally, I would recommend doing deadlifts two to three times a week,’ he says, explaining why spacing out sessions matters so much for this particular lift.

‘Skipping a day or two allows the muscles on the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back to recover better.’

For more advanced athletes, who recover a bit faster compared to others, you can do it maybe every other day.

Once the fundamentals are in place, the right gear can support a heavier lift. The belt, a piece of equipment nearly every advanced lifter uses, serves a very specific purpose.

‘The belt helps you to brace and stay in a proper position whenever you are lifting heavy,’ he says.

Frequent mistakes

So, what is the one mistake he sees people make over and over again?

“The most common mistakes are starting in the wrong position, failing to tighten your core before lifting, and rounding your back during the movement. These mistakes make the lift less effective and increase the risk of injury.”

He shares warning signs that should never be ignored.

‘If your back starts to round during a deadlift or you feel yourself losing control of your core, that’s a sign the weight is too heavy,” he says. “Reduce the weight, focus on your technique and build up gradually.”

Many people believe the exercise inevitably leads to back pain or injury. Wilson disagrees.

‘That is a myth,’ he says. ‘You just need to learn the proper mechanics before going heavy.’

He adds that the opposite of this common fear is actually true. ‘Deadlifts are actually known to strengthen your back rather than injure it.’

Preparation before a session also matters.

‘Before you start your session, always warm up properly. Warm up your hamstrings, your glutes, your lower back. Get your heart rate going up a bit.’

After warming up, build towards your heaviest set gradually instead of loading the bar with your maximum weight straight away. For example, if your goal is to lift 80kg, start with the empty bar, then progress to 20kg, 40kg and 60kg before attempting 80kg. This helps prepare your muscles, joints and nervous system for the heavier lift while reducing the risk of injury.

‘Before you get to your maximum load, build up to it slowly by slowly, maybe after three sets. Then now get into your working set.’

Protein intake

Nutrition also plays a supporting role in recovery, particularly protein intake.

‘A good recommendation for your protein intake is like 1.5 grammes per kg of your body weight.’

Timing matters too, he adds, suggesting eating protein shortly after finishing a session, roughly 30 minutes later.

Carbohydrates, on the other hand, can help before a session begins, giving you the fuel you need to push through heavy sets.

‘If you can do what we call carbohydrates loading, it will definitely help your energy levels,’ he says. ‘Carb loading is basically taking more carbohydrates than you normally do about 30 minutes to an hour before a session. This gives you the energy to actually go through with it.’

His three key pieces of advice for anyone using the deadlift to build strength, lose fat and develop a lean physique are: ‘One, learn the proper form. Technique is always key. Two, be patient in terms of how you load up the barbell. Progressively load the barbell maybe every two weeks. Then thirdly, find the proper gear.’

For those wondering just how much weight the human body can lift, Wilson points to the elite level of the sport.

‘The current world record is about 500 kilogrammes, but that’s achieved by professional strength athletes who train and compete at the highest level,’ he says.