Jacob Juma,The EULOGY: A Warrior,A Fighter,A Tireless Crusader Of Justice,A Jubilee Administration Nightmare,A Fabulous Tycoon…This Was The Man’s Life.
Scandalous wheeler-dealer,shrewd businessman,political activist,Twitter loudmouth,daring whistle-blower,mining magnate,notorious litigant,fearless brawler,controversial mogul,brash tycoon,corruption-buster,flagrant opposition stalwart,Jacob Juma had many titles. And wore them all,proudly and boisterously. Some imagined,some assumed,many real,most self-created.
Never shy of announcing his ‘billions’ to the public,always ready for a courtroom combat,and never afraid of instigating fierce wars with the high and mighty,Jacob lived a dangerous life,fraught with a litany of endless lawsuits either filed by him or against him.
He bestrode the political landscape with a fierceness that was unmistakable,a zeal that was unbreakable and a passion that was unshakable. He was invincible; notorious,controversial,fabulously wealthy,ballsy and absolutely audacious.
Nothing seemed to faze him. Not the death threats that had lately become his cup of tea. Not even the unsightly vision of his business rival Bryan Yongo camping at his Nairobi home gate with a gang of goons,intent of finishing him.
His bottomless wealth stretched across the City. And beyond. And over the seas. Far and beyond.
Audacious and mettlesome,Jacob braved many a lawsuits. And instigated many too. He went to legal war with some of the most powerful men on the land,unafraid to face off with them in Court,always ready to call them out,expose their shady deals,brand them criminals and publicize their unscrupulousness.
He stepped on many toes. And relished it.
But he wasn’t always the notorious litigant. Sometimes he’d be the arrogant,showy tycoon endlessly touting his wealth and immense means to the public,unafraid of the repercussions and not even bothering telling the World how he became so filthy rich.
This is a man who,in 1999,would buy nine acres of land from the son of the then-President Daniel Toroitich arap Moi, Mr. Jonathan Moi. And then,fraudulently,as the story went,buy some other contentious chunk of land off Mombasa Road with the same Moi. The case of which remains pending in Court.
City Businessman,Bryan Yongo,Juma’s perennial nemesis.
Jacob seemed to be in a rush to acquire wealth and announce it’s acquisition in equal speed. Haughty and lordy,nothing Mr. Juma did lacked fanfare. Not his spirited attack of the Jubilee Government which,to him,was flawed to the core or his combative approach to his business rivals chiefly Bryan Yongo.
Enter William Ruto. A man Juma had very little love for. Or faith in. Most of Ruto’s colorful political journey was riddled with endless lawsuits filed by Mr. Juma challenging,among other things,Ruto’s alleged corruption and unethical acquisition of land and property.
He would also take to Twitter to ceaselessly berate the Jubilee Government and in particular the two Principals not even sparing them his acidic tongue and throwing their way an insult or two. President Kenyatta never lacked in Mr. Juma’s daily chorus of the incompetent,and Juma would spend days excoriating the President till his death.
A lover of the finest things in life,and definitely of young lasses, Juma lived fabulously and marvelously. With magnificent homes littered across the City – From Westlands to Karen to Kitisuru,the man knew how to pull of a Kingly lifestyle and he did so with absolute alacrity.
An avid hater of corruption,it wasn’t clear how much of it he was involved in,or how he acquired his massive properties and wealth. He pandered a narrative that stuck to his mining business but he surely wasn’t the cleanest businessman in town.
To mask his shady dealings and past crimes,Mr. Juma would shield himself under the Opposition umbrella,taking it upon himself to blow the lid on some of Jubilee’s most atrocious scandals,accurate and detailed to the core.
Prior to his death,Mr. Juma had decided to break down the savage Eurobond heist associated with the Jubilee Government,and he was on point, 100% of the time.
He did fear for his life,yes,but never acted like he did. Or let that fear preoccupy his life and stop him from going for the blood of the Ruling Elite.
Indomitable and lion hearted,Mr. Juma risked his life for the truth. Or, at least,his version of the truth.
He fought on,railed on,Tweeted on,spoke on and strode on… A bounty over his head,a bullet across his Street,he never relented,never apologized,never cowed,never chickened out and certainly was never sorry nor rueful.
His enemies learned the hard way. And now they’ve come for his soul.
Rest In Peace, Jacob Juma alias Kabetes.
No man lived with the sort of unflinching spirit you possessed.
A warrior has fallen.
