What remains of the Matiba owned Alliance hotels

There is one memorable picture on the wall of the general manager's office at Naro Moru River Lodge.

It captures Kenneth Matiba punching the air in celebration after reaching Mt Kenya's Batian Peak, the highest point in Kenya, on December 1985.

The picture, taken in his prime, is the perfect metaphor for Mr Matiba, who was at the top of business and politics in Kenya then.

At one time, his Alliance Group of Hotels were the hallmark of hospitality in South Coast.

The hotel chain included Alliance Jadini Hotel, Alliance Safari Beach and Alliance Africana Sea Lodge located along Diani beach in the south of Mombasa, and Tropical Village in Malindi.

Under Kalamka Ltd (later The People Ltd), the former Kiharu MP also published the People newspaper.

Investment company

He also ran a successful farm in Kiambu and held shares in Wangu Investment Company, which owns the expansive Wangu Embori Farm in Timau, Meru County.

Matiba was also the principal shareholder at the Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed Carbacid Ltd.

But his fortunes began shrinking when he was detained in 1991, and after his unsuccessful 1992 presidential bid.

Apart from losing the election in 1992, Matiba also lost his grip on his vast business empire.

Once close friends deserted as his health deteriorated.

One after the other, pieces of his hospitality empire went under the auctioneer's hammer.

Jadini Beach Hotel was auctioned in 2015. All except Naro Moru River Lodge in Nyeri County and Safari Beach Hotel were lost, although the latter later shut down.

Naro Moru River Lodge, with its rustic wooden cabins and the Naro Moru River flowing through its grounds, is the last of Matiba’s hotels.

Farm house

The lodge occupies more than 74 acres and was originally a farm house before it was acquired by Alliance Hotels in 1978.

In the lounge, autographed T-shirts hang on the walls - memorabilia of past mountain climbers from as far back as the 1980s, including Matiba.

Although a decent effort has been made to ensure that the facility does not lose the allure that made it one of the best lodges in the region, there are signs that its glory days are gone.

The tarmac road leading from the gate to the reception has wasted away and the tennis court has been swallowed up by bushes.

The need for renovation has not escaped General Manager Edward Wangeci, who said there were plans to revamp the whole place.

“We are planning to give everything a fresh look while keeping the rustic look," he said.

Fairly healthy

Sarah Wanini, a housekeeper since 1997, recounts how Matiba, then fairly healthy, would visit the hotel at least three times each year.

“He would call all the staff to a reception and tell us that he had spent his life working and that it was our turn to do so,” she said.

As his health deteriorated, Matiba started visiting in a wheelchair and the hotel staff tried their best to make all essential areas accessible to him by fitting ramps.

Inside the two-roomed cottage that he used, one room was set aside for his nurses.

The visits eventually became less frequent before stopping altogether.