Kenyan woman shares pain of shutting down business that survived Covid-19: "I hate this regime"

Woman stressful keeping hands on head, tired and frustrated. [Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto]

For six years, Cecilia Wanjiku poured her heart and soul into her bar and restaurant. Through sleepless nights, endless sacrifices, and the devastating blows of the COVID-19 pandemic, she fought to keep her doors open. But in the end, the weight of Kenya’s harsh economic reality crushed her dream.

With a heavy heart, she took to social media to share her pain. "After six years of running my bar and restaurant, a business that survived COVID despite being closed for over eight months in 2020, I’ve finally shut the doors for good."

Her words carried the agony of countless small business owners struggling to stay afloat in an unforgiving economy. Frustration boiled over: "I hate this regime and everything they stand for."

The tweet went viral, drawing over 400,000 impressions and sparking an outpouring of sympathy, anger, and shared grief. Many resonated with her story, echoing the same struggles, crippling operational costs, suffocating taxes, endless bribes, and a dwindling customer base.

"In the end, I was running a pyramid scheme," she lamented, admitting that the business was no longer sustainable.Her pain was not hers alone. Others stepped forward to share their own heartbreak.

User @Tata_YaBana posted a haunting image of a closed liquor store, writing: "Took this last photo, shut the doors, and went home. For three months, I paid rent without any business. Finally, a distress sale followed. Small businesses in Kenya can break you."

Another user, @justusshaniz, captured the absurdity of it all: "It’s only in Kenya where, to run a successful business, you need another hustle to support the first one, and a second hustle to support the second... It’s crazy, guys."

The frustration wasn’t just about failed businesses, it was about a system that seemed rigged against ordinary Kenyans. @LoidMutharimi put it bluntly: "You cannot outhustle bad governance. We all need to come out when the time is right and fight this tyranny."

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The numbers paint an even grimmer picture. According to the Federation of Kenyan Employers, the private sector lost over 70,000 jobs in the first year of the current administration. In September 2024, the Registrar of Companies announced the closure of more than 115 businesses, including once-thriving brands.