MP Njoroge Wainaina Narrates Devastating Loss: From Millionaire to Pauper in a Day of Protests
On the morning of June 25, 2024, Kieni MP Njoroge Wainaina experienced a dramatic change in fortune, claiming he woke up wealthy but ended the day impoverished.
The day marked the anti-Finance Bill protests led by youths, and the MP was unaware of the impending events.
During his first public appearance since the nationwide protests, Mr. Wainaina recounted how the June 25 demonstrations left him destitute after looters ransacked and set fire to his two supermarkets in Nyeri and Nanyuki towns.
“In Nanyuki, they torched my five-story building. That day, I woke up a millionaire, but went to bed poor,” he lamented, estimating his losses at over Sh500 million.
The MP chose not to seek revenge against the looters.
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“Instead, I prayed to God to redirect the blessings meant for them to me,” he stated recently, still showing signs of trauma from the loss. He also urged the church to convince its followers to return the stolen goods from his businesses.
He spoke during the burial ceremony of 81-year-old Charles Kariuki, a revered Agikuyu ‘King’ (Muthamaki), in Muruguru village, Nyeri County, on Wednesday.
The MP called on the Presbyterian clergy present to intercede with the local community on his behalf.
“I was robbed by the very people you preach to. Their homes are filled with fridges, cookers, and washing machines. Tell them to return them, and I will not involve the police if they do so willingly,” he said.
Mr. Wainaina was targeted by protesters for voting “Yes” to Finance Bill 2024. However, on Wednesday, he did not mention the proposed legislation.
In Nyeri town, property worth Sh550 million was destroyed, while in Nanyuki, a building housing Chieni Supermarket was vandalized.
The Nyeri town outlet has remained closed to the public since the incident.
Job losses
Speaking to Nation, his son Joseph Wainaina revealed that 322 workers lost their jobs due to the incident.
“The employees worked at the two supermarkets and a wholesale distribution outlet, which was part of the supermarket in Nyeri town,” he said.
He added that the family has not received any further information from the police regarding additional arrests connected to the incident.
So far, in Nyeri, around 35 people have been charged with stealing property from the business, released on a cash bail of Sh3,000 each. In Nanyuki town, at least 36 people were charged and released on a Sh100,000 cash bail each.
The MP expressed disbelief over the ordeal, revealing that the very people he had helped before entering politics had turned against him.
He recounted how in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he donated three lorries of foodstuff in different areas, only to later face ingratitude.
“I have been a Christian all my life, but with what happened to me on that day, I am now starting to doubt Christianity. The looting was ungodly.”
MP Njoroge Wainaina Narrates Devastating Loss: From Millionaire to Pauper in a Day of Protests
