NAKURU, Kenya – Former Lugari Member of Parliament and one-time presidential candidate Cyrus Jirongo has died following a road accident on the Nairobi–Nakuru highway.
Rift Valley Traffic Enforcement Officer Sarah Chumo confirmed that Jirongo was involved in a head-on collision. Details surrounding the circumstances of the crash were not immediately disclosed.
Jirongo, born Cyrus Shakhalaga Khwa Jirongo on March 21, 1961, was a prominent and often controversial figure in Kenyan politics, rising to national fame at a young age during the early years of multiparty democracy.
He attended Mang’u High School between 1978 and 1981 and quickly became known more for political mobilisation than for a formal professional background.
His breakthrough came in 1992 when he emerged as the leader of Youth for KANU 92, a powerful lobby group that played a key role in supporting President Daniel arap Moi during Kenya’s first multiparty elections.
The group’s aggressive fundraising and grassroots mobilisation made Jirongo one of the most influential young political figures of the early 1990s, earning him both admiration and criticism.
Before entering elective politics, Jirongo also served as chairman of AFC Leopards Football Club in 1991, a role that expanded his public profile beyond the political arena.
In 1997, he was elected MP for Lugari Constituency and later appointed Minister for Rural Development in 2002 in the final KANU government under President Moi.
Although he lost his parliamentary seat in the 2002 General Election, he staged a comeback in 2007 after winning Lugari on his own party ticket, the Kenya African Democratic Development Union, becoming its sole MP until 2013.
Jirongo harboured presidential ambitions for years. In 2013, he briefly explored a presidential bid before unsuccessfully contesting the Kakamega Senate seat, backing Raila Odinga in the presidential race.
He later ran for president in 2017 under the United Democratic Party but garnered only a marginal share of the national vote.
His party later joined the Azimio la Umoja coalition ahead of the 2022 elections, after which Jirongo publicly congratulated President William Ruto following his victory.
Beyond politics, Jirongo was widely associated with vast business interests, particularly in real estate and agriculture, and often claimed to have amassed billionaire status at a young age. However, from the mid-2000s, his financial fortunes deteriorated sharply.
He became entangled in prolonged legal battles over unpaid loans, with several courts ruling against him.
In 2017, the High Court declared him bankrupt after failing to repay loans running into hundreds of millions of shillings.
Properties linked to companies associated with him were subsequently auctioned or placed under receivership, while courts also ordered him to settle large debts owed to private individuals, including trade unionist Francis Atwoli.
Jirongo was polygamous and often spoke publicly about his large family, which includes wives from different communities.
In 2025, he suffered a personal tragedy following the death of one of his daughters after a short illness.
His death brings to a close the turbulent and eventful journey of one of Kenya’s most recognisable political figures of the past three decades.
