They sneered at Baba Yao: The nine lives of Ferdinand Waititu

Kiambu Gubernatorial aspirant Ferdinand Waititu

If you had told Ferdinand Waititu Baba Yao when he was a humble sand seller that he would one day be referred to as “His Excellency,” he would probably have roared with laughter. Now he is a heartbeat a way from the coveted governor’s mansion in Kiambu - Kenya’s second wealthiest county.

Waititu’s journey to the top echelons of power began in 2002 when he was elected to City Hall as a councillor for Njiru ward on a Kanu ticket at a time when Nairobi was a National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) zone. In fact, he was the only Kanu councillor in the assembly.