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For Kenyan Business Tycoon, Njenga Karume, Honesty Starts Right on the Cover of his Biography
Since a few years ago, writing biographies or autobiographies has become common in Kenya. But much of what has come out so far have been useless public relations write-ups that hide more than they reveal.
Even the titles of the books are clear warnings that the reader is about to join in a trip of self- ego, meant only to deceive the world. Writer John Kamau puts it more dramatically when, in 1999, in a review of retired President Daniel arap Moi’s biography, Moi: The Making of an African Statesman, he says that the book “sounds like a panel beating exercise on an old wreck.”
Beyond Expectations, in deed!
Not so, of course, is Njenga karume’s biography, Beyond Expectations – From Charcoal to Gold. Karume tries in the book, to “bare all” and to tell his story with humor, pace and sensitivity.
Of course, writing a biography presents a few challenges. One of them is choosing what to tell and what to leave out. Whatever you tell, someone is bound to say you left out important details – as some are already saying Karume has done in his biography.
Some people are saying that Karume got his wealth in unfair ways, and he doesn’t state that. Of course, we should be honest and serious. If I was Karume and I had gotten my wealth unfairly, I am also leave that out. No one, except Bishop Gilbert Deya, would include such details – unless, of course, that was the purpose of the book.
Much is actually Revealed
To Karume’s credit, there are many narratives in his book which show that he exploited his ethnicity to a great extent to amass his wealth. For example, he exploited his ethnicity to create Gema which brought him much closer to President Jomo Kenyatta who, of course, passed on some businesses like Kenya Wine Agencies to Karume and his Kikuyu group of wine merchants. Had Karume been another tribe, he would possibly not have got the businesses he got from Kenyatta’s government.
But there are those who will argue that as a businessman, it is being shrewd to seize any opportunity to increase your wealth. After all, there weren’t only two Kikuyus – Kenyatta and Karume. There were millions of Kikuyus, who having no talent in business didn’t recognize the opportunity the Kenyatta government presented for them to make money. And many are today poor and squatters because of this – even if they like to pretend that there was conscience in their not making money.
Lessons for Entrepreneurs
For entrepreneurs, there are a few lessons you can draw from Karume’s story
1. Always use any lift that is offered on your way to success. Kenyatta’s presidency offered Karume a lift on his way to becoming a multimillionaire.
2. Learn the value of social networks. Karume understood this and created Gema which he used to reach Kenyatta and the rest of those in power. Oginga Odinga used it create wealth and power with his Luo Thrift and Trading Company. If you cannot create Gema or thrift company, follow Barack Obama’s example to Face book or Twitter.
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