John Githongo 's Biography, Age, Spouse, Tribe, Real Name, Networth and Lifestyle Wikidata | Claim this profile

John Githongo 's Biography in Summary

John Githongo is a former Kenyan journalist whose works have been featured both nationally and internationally. He exposed high level corruption in Kibaki’s government-including the Anglo Leasing scandal. Githongo is a recipient of multiple awards from international bodies for his relentless fight against the vice of corruption. In the recently contested presidential elections, he is one of the people challenging the election of the 9th respondent who is Hon. William Ruto.  

Here is the background of John Githongo as told by WoK.

Education and Family of Githongo 

He attended St. Mary’s School in Nairobi followed by the University of Wales where he pursued Economics and Philosophy. 

His father, Joe Githongo, was the proprietor of an accounting firm whose clients included Jomo Kenyatta. 

Career of Githongo 

After returning to Kenya, he worked as a management consultant and researcher then switched to journalism.

He wrote for the East African, Executive Magazine and was a correspondent for The Economist. During this time, he wrote several articles about the widespread corruption in the government, something that did not endear him to the powers that be. 

Githongo joined Transparency International Movement and worked as the founder executive director of the Kenyan Chapter of Transparency International in 1999 following years of being denied registration by the government. He was also a member of Transparency International in Berlin. 

In 1998, an NGO called Series for Alternative Research in East Africa (SAREAT) founded by Mutahi Ngunyi approached him to edit a regional political economy magazine called East African Alternatives. The NGO was funded by Ford Foundation and went down after four issues.

When the Kibaki administration was in power, he was made permanent secretary for Governance and Ethics. He resigned from the position suddenly in 2005 sources claiming that the government was not serious in its efforts to end corruption.