"I Started My First Business Without a Penny": Tycoon Jimmy Wanjigi Explains How He Made His Billions
2022 presidential aspirant Jimmy Wanjigi has dismissed claims that acquired his massive wealth illegally.
Wanjigi, who is estimated to be worth billions of shillings, said he started building his empire with garbage collection business while in college.
The businessman-turned-politician indicated that he was the pioneer of private garbage collection business in the country during the late president Moi’s administration.
“My first business was garbage collection. I pioneered private garbage collection in this country. There was a time during the Moi administration that garbage in this city when we had a city commission headed by Fred Gumo, was a nightmare. Everywhere you went, garbage was not being collected.”
“And the by-laws said that garbage must be collected by the city once it’s put in the receptacle. I got permission, after a lot of lobbying to assist…a complimentary service…that I would provide plastic bags which I would not put in the receptacle. I needed permission to dump the garbage on the Dandora site. I began that business without a penny,” Wanjigi said during an interview on Citizen TV.
He explained that he approached a ‘Mzungu’ friend from his high school days to help him source funds to buy a pick-up for the garbage collection business.
By the end of the first year, the two had managed to buy two other trucks for the business, which he sold later and ventured into other business activities that helped him accumulate his billions. He admitted that he secured lucrative government contracts in Kenya and abroad.
“Government projects inside and outside Kenya. I’m an agent of various companies, and development projects are the biggest projects in Africa, even in Kenya. The government today is 70% of the economy of this country, who would not want to do business or have an inclination to touching business with the government? If you’re a businessman, you would.”
Comments (23)
The guy need to cut the BS, his dad Maina Wanjigi was a minister during Moi's era and all this BS about garbage collection is all garbage.
@ Kithoi, you know he has to show wananchi,that he was not born with asilver spoon,and that he is like them. Otherwise running for presidency will be a hard hill to climb as an elitist. Obviously being the son of a minister ,that recognition alone opens doors.Especially in the corrupt Moi regime.
There is no way in the world you can start with nothing,and build an empire.You either steal,inherit,borrow,share,or get lucky and hit the lottery.An idea remains just that,till some funds gets it in motion. So Mr. Maina,give a better explanation.One thing Iam sure of is that you are not going to acknowledge any illgotten wealth.Why should you if it would cost you votes?
Some one once said,“ In politics,there are no permanent enemies, and no permanent friends, only permanent interests” We see that all the time in Kenya.Alliance made,and broken,but never permanently,particularly as elections get closer. They are all driven by -What is in it for me-Maina's interest is obvious to me...
And this is the problem with Kenya politics where a gut has to peddle open lies to the commoners to get some votes! We need a real candidate who can easily relate with ordinary Kenyans! They guy has been feeding on gold all his life and now he wants to tell us otherwise!
Here is the deal - don’t vote for a lying bastard from Ruto through wanjigi all the way up the ladder! We are sick and tired of being lied to by these cons!!
@Kithoi, I like your choice of words and I can't stop laughing! "----and all this BS about garbage collection is all garbage". I couldn't agree more! And you know what, all this talk by our wanna be politicians is all garbage!!
Why do politicians like to lie about "from rugs to riches" success? He is a Wanjigi and the name has deep roots in the Kenyatta administration. "Jimmy, if you want us to take you seriously, first pay up the millions you owe on the two suits you stole". Bure kabisa.
Oh! I forgot he stole the suits! What is the difference between Wanjigi and our “first” thief the DP Ruto! So Wanjigi is trying to get into politics so that he does not pay the debt of the suits he stole?
Wanjigi you have been disqualified kid!
Lipa miilioni mbili za zile suti mbili uliiba.
f your title no way u can start business without a penny
How all politicians lie they grow up poor.
And then I stole the rest ...there fixed it !
Yep. That's exactly what he should have said. He is such a nonstarter.
Haka kadame kako na usherati mingi sana!
RISASI TU
Only biz u can start from zero is Omosh kind of begging and prostitution.
Yeah, right! It’s more like “pioneered Tenderpreneurship”.
The heaps of garbage in Nairobi will come back if Ruto is elected president! The Apple 🍏 does not fall very far from the tree! Loot all is a Moi student of doing mashamba type of stuff, and he does not see beauty just like Moi failed to see and made Nairobi a borea compost heap!
I have tried to learn and understand that this world is full of sick people. Such sick that as we speak of Wanjigi, they are left behind hallucinating about Ruto.
The cleanliness of a city does not entirely depend on city or municipal administration and its cleaners but the discipline and goodwill from its residents.
Even though Moi was not directly responsible for cleaning Nairobi, the City looked more decent and cleaner than it’s lately.
The heaps of choking garbage has since quadrupled. Nairobi river has choked to its near death.
I thought Wanjiku is a high school drop out from a wealthy Maina Wanjigi family! How is he gonna run the country if he can’t hang in there to graduate from the old four 4 system! Run does not manage things! This dude is another crazy con like Ruto himself!
Jimmy was a product of the 7-4-2-3 system.
“Wanjiku”? By the way Wanjigi looks like Wanjiku!?
We really should take pity on a man born so poor that he had to be chauffered to primary school in a Mercedes shared with his siblings (oh the horror) it was so bad that he was forced to attend St. Mary's indeed he was forced to work for his dad -who managed to acquire lots of land as an assistant minister - after his return from university. Imagine having to attend a private Catholic school and hob nob with Kenya's most successful kleptocrats. Tenderprenuers are people too and deserving of our understanding and sympathy. This fortune was built from scratch, granted it was a lot of scratch but it was scratch nevertheless.
Another con speaking some heavy mafi here! You grew up with a silver spoon in your mouth and now the gold spoon has been added to your mouth through the nose! Wacha upuzi Wanjigi!
Look at the school this fool went to York College one of the best in Canada , because his dad
Maina Wanjigi @former MP for kamukunji could afford .
Stop that nonsense you fool your were spoon fed dummy.