Architect who harboured grand dreams of prosperity
What you need to know:
Twenty years later, a trail of disappointments are all that is left of his lofty idealism as the money he took from both peasants and the well-to-do to invest on their behalf is yet to earn dividends.
He says that, when the idea developed in his mind, he first approached seven of his friends in 2002.
By 2007 they had put up the “foundations and pillars” of what has become a behemoth investment company.
John Muchira Kithaka was a man with a grand dream and was determined to actualise it while still training as an architect at university in 1998.
Twenty years later, a trail of disappointments are all that is left of his lofty idealism as the money he took from both peasants and the well-to-do to invest on their behalf is yet to earn dividends.
INFLUENTIAL KENYANS
In numerous documentaries and interviews to be found in the internet, Mr Kithaka comes across as a forceful character with strong conviction.
He says that, when the idea developed in his mind, he first approached seven of his friends in 2002. By 2007 they had put up the “foundations and pillars” of what has become a behemoth investment company.
When FEP started, some of those who have sat at the advisory board is former Provincial Commissioner Joseph Kaguthi, one-time Chancellor of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nairobi Prof Francis Gichaga.
Others are Bishop Dr Lawi Imathiu who is the retired Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Kenya, former long-serving Permanent Secretary and career administrator Dr J S Mathenge, former Kenyan Ambassador to Japan and South Korea Amb Dennis Awori and former PS Erastus Mwongera.
He also incorporated the church. Anglican Church, PCEA, and a host of evangelical churches came on board. In the diaspora, he also tapped influential Kenyan pastors.
ACQUIRING WEALTH
In interviews, Mr Kithaka says his dream was shaped by learning, interacting and observing wealthy Kenyans and how they acquired their wealth.
This is how he describes himself on his website http://drjohnkithaka.com/
“I’m the founding president of Fountain Enterprises Programme (FEP) and president of FEP Group and its affiliated catalytic societies. I hold a PhD in Christian Leadership, a MSc in Entrepreneurship and Bachelor of Architecture from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).
I’m a registered architect and a corporate member of the Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK), chairman of the Kenyan Chapter of Global Business Roundtable (GBR) and a valuable board member in various national and international corporate and social institutions.
I have authored several books among them: Beyond Success, Gates of Dominion, Three Pillars of Success, The Making of Great Nations and Wings of Excellence.
I love speaking on transformational leadership and emerging socio-economic trends.”
