How row with Mossad led to abandonment of Biwott’s Yaya Centre Towers West Wing

Yaya Towers West Wing building a super-prime piece of real estate has been abandoned for over 3o years. It is part of the vast estate owned by former powerful cabinet minister the late Nicholas Biwott.

Although many knew him as the Total Man, he had another nickname only known in certain circles – Bull of Auckland. He acquired the name as a tease by GG Kariuki in Parliament back in the 90s after an embarrassing diplomatic hitch at New Zealand. In this trip, Total Man had been part of Moi’s delegation to Auckland New Zealand for a Commonwealth Heads of State Summit. One morning, a female housekeeper believing the hotel room was empty, ran into Biwott in his room while he was ‘comando’. Moments later she bolted out screaming that he had attempted to rape her. The police were called, he was arrested but to avoid a diplomatic row the matter was quietly settled; but not before it being a matter of all jokes and taunts among his peers on how he almost ‘mounted’ a hapless innkeeper.

Total Man, was a very shrewd yet ruthless operator.

He built Yaya Centre and the ghostly building adjacent to it.

There was a bank that went under, definitely by design, called Trade Bank. This bank had been started by two brothers; Alnoor Kassam and Iqbal Kassam.

Trade Bank had been sued for fraudulently transferring Yaya Centre to itself. The story was, the bank had borrowed money from Deposit Protection Fund for the construction of its own building – Trade Bank Building but it instead charged the assets of Yaya Towers Ltd to secure the loan. This is because in the early 90s, they had advanced Biwott 900M which he never repaid.

Now Trade Bank was founded by the Kassams, it was 75 percent owned by Biwott and his Israeli friend Gad Zeevi. These two also founded HZ Group the company which holds the title to Yaya Centre.

They had already begun construction of Yaya Centre but through their bank, they managed to advance loans to themselves in underhand deals.

Later Kassam started demand repayment. These demands didn’t go down well with Total Man and he sent the well-oiled state machinery on Kassam. Fearing for his life, he fled to Canada and has never set his foot in Kenya since.

The two business partners fell out soon after. Gad Zeevi accused Biwott of sidelining him in the companies they jointly owned. Zeevi had a second partner he had brought into the partnership by the name Vaizman Aharoni. Since Biwott could not be trusted, Zeevi brought in his best friend called David Kimche who was in Mossad jusk like Aharoni. They came in as friends and associates.

Biwott didn’t trust the spies either, therefore he beefed up his own personal security.

Bittow had the ear of the president and that gave him almost absolute power. When former US Ambassador to Kenya Smith Hempstone supported the clamour of multipartysim and condemned Moi’s government because of Ouko’s death,Biwott had him expelled. He relentlessly followed him to the USA with litigation from all corners including using his ex girlfriends to torment his soul until he quit his job as a diplomat and later filed for bankruptcy. He went back to his former career in journalism and authoring memoirs as his pastime. He later died of diabetes in 2006 5 years after Biwott successfully sued him for defamation.

Biwott knew Mossad were not village boys therefore always looked over his shoulder. He travelled in unmarked vehicles. No Mercedes nor Pajeros and Landcruisers. In fact, I once saw him in the Mercedes show-room at university Way but he left in a Peugeot 605.  Biwott would use 5 cars to get to one destination and you’d never know which car he would be in as he’d start the journey with one and end in a totally different one. He would also hitch hike lifts from total strangers and reward then with a wand of notes. He never ate food served in events and if he had to, he’d get food from the common people servings. He would exchange high-table food with common food. 

In 1995 while Yaya was still under construction the Israeli partners had jitters. They were being trailed every where by the dreaded special branch. They instructed the Israeli contractor on site to abandon the project as they cut their losses.But they were not going to make it easy for Total Man. Aharoni ordered the contractor to pour concrete in all elevator shafts, drainage, all functional waterways and stairwells and communication conduits.

That is how the West Wing of the Yaya complex was rendered useless and dysfunctional. It has left many structural engineers scratching their head one how to collect the mess with majority proposing that the only way is to demolish it all the way down to the foundation and begin the project afresh.

Wuth this last blow to their irritating partner the Israelis left the country back to Israel and have never returned as least by the time this article was written.