Engineer who has built matatu empire

Wamasaa Travellers Sacco Chairman Stephen Mbolonzi at his Nairobi office, displays an award given to his company by former Thika Mayor Patrick Makau for being the most disciplined Sacco early last year, in Thika. [Photo: Nanjinia Wamuswa]

As a young boy growing up in Kiteta area, Makueni County, Stephen Mbolonzi’s dream was to venture into successful business. However, at the time, he wasn’t sure about what venture will do for him. After completing engineering training at then Mbagathi Training College, Mbolonzi was employed by then Kenya Posts and Telecommunications Corporation (KPTC), as senior engineer. The organisation was in 1999 split into Telkom Kenya, Postal Corporation of Kenya and Communications Commission of Kenya.

All along, however, he was pretty uneasy with a salaried job. “l hated employment because of earning a fixed salary. It could only be adjusted at the mercy of your employer. But in business, there was no fixed income and one could earn a lot of money depending on his or her hard work and strategy,” he explains.