Ewert Grogan the shrewd businessman who fleeced the Colonial government

Colonel Ewart Grogan in an undated picture [Courtesy]

When stories of Kenya's captains of industry are told, that of one of business pioneers stands out because of the ripples he caused in the corporate world as well as his knack for stirring political and racial controversy.

Grogan rarely features in the list of the who is who in the corporate world. But there was a time the name Ewart Grogan was easily recognisable. Those were the days he was notorious for shooting Africans from the balcony of excusive whites-only hotels and presided over the flogging of "insolent" hand-cart pullers who dared cast glances at white women.