Since joining politics more than two decades ago, Deputy President William Ruto has gradually climbed up the ladder to his current position and has poised himself to ascend to the top job.
However, behind every politician is a group of tireless associates who work behind the scenes to ensure his brand remains luminous and for the DP, that includes a group of financiers such as the media-shy David Langat.
In a report by Daily Nation on Sunday, August 25, 2019, Langat was once an integral part of the Ruto's inner circle before parting ways in 2019 and reportedly decamping to Chama Cha Mashinani (CCM), headed by former Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto.
The paper detailed that Langat joined the team in 2007 and was financing the DP's campaigns alongside other tycoons such as Joshua Kulei and Zedekiah Bundotich Kiprop, alias Buzeki.
“A number of things are going on but I don’t want to talk about that because the time for politics will come. For now, let us focus on how we can deal with youth unemployment and other problems we face as a country,” Langat told Daily Nation at the time.
The reclusive billionaire is known for an impressive investment portfolio including a Ksh200 billion industrial park investment in Eldoret Town.
An article by The Standard in 2017 revealed that the tycoon owns Koisagat Tea Estate in Nandi County, Kapchepet Tea Factory in Kericho County and runs Selenkei Investments Ltd, a company that generates electricity from solar energy.
The paper further disclosed that Langat owns a number of prime properties at the Coast, including Nyali Centre in Mombasa County as well as the Sunrise Resort.
In January 2018, the tycoon, in association with Guangdong New South Group Ltd, embarked on a special Ksh200 billion project in Eldoret dubbed, Africa Economic Zones (AEZ) Pearl River Industrial Park.
The project was poised to become the first privately owned special economic zone (SEZ) in the country.
He explained that he embarked on the project in order to help farmers in Uasin Gishu County earn more from their produce.
“I have travelled quite a lot in terms of doing business in different countries, and have been inspired by the development in other countries. I felt that as a country, we lag behind in industrialisation, and that was when the idea was conceived.
“The best thing I did was to buy land and my main idea then was to do the normal industrial work. My focus was agro-processing,” he told The Standard.
“So I appointed some experts on this special economic zones, we got some consultants who already had some idea what special economic zones are, especially the Dongo Kundu,” he continued.
Langat is also the head of the DL Group of Companies empire and for his entrepreneurial skills, he was named as Mombasa County’s best business leader by The Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) Mombasa brand in 2016.
“This award is an early Christmas for me and the entire DL Group of Companies and I thank all those who voted for me,” he stated.
