How Jirongo introduced 18 women as 'wives'

By Newsflash Writer

At the height of his political and business turmoil, Cyrus Jirongo began a practice that stunned even those closest to him: steadily introducing woman after woman as his wife, until the number reached 18.

What began as a conventional marriage quietly evolved into one of the most unusual polygamous arrangements in Kenya’s political circles, exposing a private life that contrasted sharply with his public image of power and influence.

By the time of his death, the irony was striking. Despite once presiding over a household that included four formally recognised wives — and many more introduced as such — Jirongo was living separately from all of them. His final years were spent in Nairobi’s leafy Gigiri suburb, in a house owned by a long-time political ally who remained loyal even as his wealth and influence faded.

Though his political clout and financial muscle had long diminished, Jirongo remained hopeful. In Gigiri, the man best remembered as the architect of Youth for Kanu ’92 lived modestly, sharing the home only with a personal driver and a chef as he searched for a path out of the financial distress that defined his later life.

Marriage that began in secrecy

To understand how Jirongo’s family life expanded so dramatically, one must return to the mid-1980s. Kenya was grappling with economic hardship in 1986, implementing World Bank and IMF-backed reforms that left jobs scarce and money tighter still. While many young graduates struggled, 25-year-old Jirongo appeared to be thriving.

He lived in Phase II of Ngei Estate in Lang’ata, drove a BMW saloon car and enjoyed a lifestyle that set him apart from his peers. It was during this period that he met Joan Chemutai Kimeto, an 18-year-old neighbour and sister to two of his close friends.

Read more:Was Cyrus Jirongo assassinated?

Introduced to her in December 1985, Jirongo quickly fell in love. Ms Kimeto, fresh out of high school and hoping to study in the United States, saw her plans overtaken by the relationship. Matters became more complicated when she became pregnant in 1986.

The couple chose to elope to Mombasa to avoid confronting her family. Their escape was short-lived. Ms Kimeto’s relatives tracked them down, forcing Jirongo to admit responsibility and commit to marriage. Family negotiations followed, dowry was paid, and the union was formalised.

Hustling, politics and sudden fame

At the time, Jirongo had no formal office. Instead, he conducted business from public phone booths along Moi Avenue and in Otiende Estate, handing out their numbers as his contact lines. Wherever he was, he would rush to answer calls, striking deals from spaces that were technically public but effectively his own.

Those improvised “offices” sustained his young family as he hustled across multiple ventures. His big political break came in 1992 when he was elected chairman of Youth for Kanu ’92, the lobby group formed to rally young voters behind President Daniel arap Moi’s re-election.

Politics transformed his life overnight. His home became a hub for relatives, politicians, supporters and business associates, and Jirongo rarely turned anyone away. Though uneasy about the loss of privacy, Ms Kimeto supported him. Money flowed, an office was established at Development Bank House, and his company, Cypper Enterprises, expanded, with Ms Kimeto serving as a director.

That rise, however, was short-lived. After President Moi secured re-election and disbanded YK’92, Jirongo fell out of favour. Contracts stalled, government payments dried up, and auctioneers began circling his assets.

Introducing more wives

It was during this period of political and financial strain that Jirongo’s domestic life changed most dramatically. One by one, he introduced other women to Ms Kimeto — not as companions, but as wives. The monogamous marriage she had known gradually became polygamous.

Ms Kimeto said the shift was deeply unsettling. At its peak, Jirongo had introduced up to 18 women as his wives, a development that took a heavy emotional toll on her. Seeking space, she seized an opportunity to further her studies in the United States in early 2000, a move Jirongo fully supported.

By the time she left, four women — Ann Kanini, Christine Nyokabi and Ann Lanoi — were formally part of Jirongo’s family. In later interviews, he defended polygamy, arguing that it should be undertaken with the knowledge and consent of the first wife.

Ms Kimeto returned to Kenya in 2005 to remain close to her children. She said Jirongo treated all his children equally, ensuring they were housed, educated and provided for.

In his final years, mounting debt overshadowed his once-flamboyant success. Auctioneers seized many of his assets, including the Gigiri matrimonial home. Despite living separately, Ms Kimeto and Jirongo remained in contact, meeting as recently as three weeks before his death.

To her, he remained a man of contradictions — flawed, generous and enterprising — whose private choices, including introducing 18 women as wives, came to define one of the most extraordinary personal stories in Kenya’s political history.