MAKUENI, Kenya- Prominent businessman and Makindu Motors founder Stephen Ngei Musyoka and his wife, Giannaphina Mumbua Ngei, have died following a tragic road accident along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway.
The couple lost their lives on Saturday after the vehicle they were travelling in was involved in a fatal crash near Masimba in Makueni County.
Police have launched investigations to establish the exact cause of the accident.
The deaths have sent shockwaves across the business community, particularly in the Ukambani region, where Musyoka was widely known for building Makindu Motors into one of Kenya’s leading automobile and motorcycle companies.
Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse confirmed the deaths, describing Musyoka as a close associate and successful entrepreneur whose journey inspired many.
“Mr. Stephen Ngei was the founder of Makindu Motors Ltd,” Mutuse said, adding that the businessman rose from humble beginnings to become one of the region’s most successful investors.
Musyoka’s company is best known for distributing SkyGo motorcycles, a brand that has become popular among boda boda operators and small-scale transport entrepreneurs across Kenya. Through Makindu Motors, he expanded operations into vehicle assembly, sales of commercial trucks, buses and agricultural machinery.
Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka also mourned the couple, describing Stephen Ngei as a self-made entrepreneur whose determination and vision created opportunities for thousands of Kenyans.
“It is with profound sorrow and a heavy heart that I received the devastating news of the passing of my dear friend, Stephen Ngei, and his beloved wife, Giannaphina Mumbua,” Kalonzo said in a statement.
He noted that Musyoka’s rise from a second-hand clothes hawker to the founder of a successful automobile assembly company embodied resilience, hard work and entrepreneurship.
Beyond business, Musyoka was a familiar figure in Kenya’s transport sector and had previously made headlines after losing millions of shillings in a fraudulent government laptop tender case that was later prosecuted in court.
The deaths of Musyoka and his wife add to growing concerns over road safety along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway, one of Kenya’s busiest transport corridors that has witnessed several fatal accidents in recent months.
The bodies were moved to a mortuary as investigations into the circumstances surrounding the crash continue.
