Business guru whose wisdom awed many

Gathuri died last month but left a mark. [PHOTO: JOB WERU/NYERI]

By Job Weru

 When young Kui climbed the podium to bade her grandfather, Mr Charles Mwangi Gathuri, goodbye, hundreds of mourners among them President Mwai Kibaki peered at her, uncertain what she had to say.

 Composed and without shedding a tear, she recited her eulogy, leaving the mourners with myriad queries over who Gathuri was to his family.

 “We thank God for the time we had with you. You showed us love and taught us many things. You taught us it was okay to climb dangerous spots like monkeys. You always cared about us and we love you always,” she narrated.

 Apparently, Gathuri had a lesson for every member of the community.     

 President Kibaki said he had lost a trustworthy friend and prominent businessman who had gone through rough patches to emerge a business mogul.

 “I urge you to take lessons from him. He was a dedicated businessman who did not fear to invest at whatever length,” said Kibaki as he addressed mourners.

 Mr Nguru Wachira described Gathuri as a titan who “differed with the norms some 45 years ago and ventured in the unpredictable world of business”.

Outstanding wisdom

 But to his children, Anthony Gathuri and Betty Muthoni, he was one person who was always there to discipline rogue children.

 “I cannot sum up what I have earned from Dad and I always referred to him as my younger brother. He gave me a shining example of how to be a gentleman,” quipped Anthony.

 Muthoni observed, “He always jolted me back to reality whenever he suspected I would slip away. He once gave me three months to clear from his house after he thought I was mature enough and educated in order to stand on my own.”

 Gathuri was not just an ordinary Kenyan. Born on July 19, 1939 in Nyeri County, he grew up in Iriaini Location and joined Gatundu Primary School in Nyeri and then Kiamwangi Intermediate School in 1952.

The man who dared

 He then enrolled in Kagumo High where he sat his O’ Levels in 1959 before joining Royal Technical College, now known as the University of Nairobi, where he graduated as a certified Company Secretary.

 Going by the head of state recollections, Gathuri stood out among other Kenyans as a successful employee in the public and private sector, as well as a successful businessman.

 The father of three worked briefly for Shell, before moving to Income Tax as an assessor.

 He was then employed by the East African Tobacco Company as a management trainee in the accounts department, before he joined Mt Kenya Wholesalers as a director.

 It is at the wholesale company where he efficiently managed the financial and administrative side of the business.

 In 1977, Gathuri was appointed to Thika Income Tax Local Committee– which also served Nyeri district before being appointed chairman of Nyeri Income tax Local Committee in 1979.

 In 1992, he relinquished his chairmanship position to join President Kibaki’s Democratic Party (DP).

 Regarding private ventures, together with other partners, formed a beer distribution company known as Farmlands Company in 1967, in which he was the first managing director. With help of his wife, Charity Wangui they steered the company to be one of the best distributors of the East African Breweries. Among others, some companies linked with Gathuri are Mt Kenya Academy, Tatu Traders Ltd, Estates Company and Kuza Limited.

 Friends and relatives remember Gathuri as a sociable man who loved being surrounded by people and one who strongly believed in education and self-growth.

 “He went to a supermarket and bought fish. He then came with it home and showed me how to cook it,” a business colleague said.

 Gathuri passed on September 5, 19 days after his admission at the Nairobi Hospital with both pneumonia and Osteoporosis.

 He was buried at his farm in Chaka township in Nyeri County.