Family of late city tycoon Francis Kiambi reveals his business empire was struggling financially

The family of the late Nairobi businessman Francis Kiambi has revealed that the deceased was struggling to keep his vast business empire afloat at the time of his death.

Kiambi, who was a director of an alcohol distillery in Nairobi was found dead on Sunday, January 8, only hours after he and his wife returned to their Karen home from an entertainment joint in the city.

In an interview with a local TV station on Thursday, Kiambi’s family members who are yet to come to terms with his demise said the businessman’s business empire appeared to be struggling financially in the months leading up to his death.

Kiambi’s sister Jesica Kajugu disclosed that the deceased’s fortunes had shrunk in what she linked to a harsh business environment.

“Kulingana na vile tunajua, hapa mwisho …biashara yake haikuwa sawa sana. Hata kuna wale directors walikuja hapa wakasema kwamba tangu serikali ianze kuweka sheria kali biashara haiendi sawa. Sio vile ilikuwa mbeleni,” Kajugu said.

Kajugu and Kiambi’s mother Priscilla Siampui, however, noted that the deceased was determined to not only expand his business but also support agricultural projects he initiated among the Tharaka community, who hail him as a hero.

The deceased’s wife Mary Waigwe Muthoni had earlier told the police that the couple spent Saturday night at Big Smoke Bar and Restaurant in Karen where they had a meeting and some drinks with a family advocate and a relative.

Muthoni disclosed that they had some domestic differences after she declined to be her husband’s guarantor in securing a Ksh2 billion loan he was seeking to start a business.

“They each spent the night in different rooms and the deceased never woke up since then but could be heard snoring throughout the day and night and had vomited in his bedroom,” police said.

“It was until today at around 0600hrs when she went to check on the deceased and she found him lying dead on his bed with some vomit beside the bed.”

Investigations into the incident are ongoing.

Matanka, as he was popularly known at his rural home in Tharaka Nithi, is credited for uplifting the economic status of his community by introducing and promoting watermelon and sorghum farming in the area.

In fact, the name Matanka is a local dialect name for watermelon, a fruit that Kiambi helped local farmers to turn into a cash cow.

“The watermelon and sorghum business changed our fortunes…we were able to build stone houses and pay school fees,” Bernard Murimi.

The businessman had previously vied for the Tharaka Nithi County senatorial seat but was unsuccessful.

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