For years, the name Abubakar Abu Joho has been vector to Kenyas cargo corridorsa figure casting long shadows over Mombasas port logistics, railway freight routes, bulk storage yards, bonded depots and last-mile trucking. His influence, rooted in business acumen and deep political ties, once seemed unassailable. But now, as Kenyas Supreme Court invalidates key deals and rivals surge into corridors he long controlled, Johos empire is facing challenges of its own making. To understand where Joho came fromand why the system that lifted him is now probing his foundationswe need to trace his past, map his network, and watch how he handles fresh pressure. From tides to terminal: origin and ascent Abu Joho is the elder brother of Hassan Ali Joho, Mombasas former governor and now Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Blue Economy Maritime Affairs. That link has rooted Abu in both port business and coastal politics. Through his brothers decades in county government, Abu consolidated access to land leases, permit pathways, political goodwilland occasionally, influence over how contracts got awarded. His logistics arc began in Autoport Freight Terminals Ltd AFTLa company that grew into the spine of his control over inland and coastal freight. Autoport secured prime leases, including a controversial 45-year lease for 26 acres at Nairobi Freight Terminal NFT, under terms critics say entrenched his reach. He also leveraged special SGR standard gauge railway tariff arrangements to move bulk goodsfertiliser, grain, steelat concessional rates, squeezing competitors with thinner margins. To complement Autoport, Joho invested in Portside Freight Terminals Ltd, a sibling vehicle linked by overlapping directors and addresses. Portside was approved to build a second bulk grain terminal at Mombasauntil the Supreme Court voided that licence in June 2025, citing unconstitutional procurement practices. Other enterprises tied to his network include Prima Pest Bins Ltd waste management, East Africa Terminals Ltd liquid storage, Aftraco Ltd emerging in court documents tied to land and infrastructure, and varied real estate and fertiliser trading fronts. These layers, though less public, deepen his vertical grip from terminal to yard, storage tank to plot. Political gravity and alliances In Kenyas networked power structure, Johos influence isnt strictly commercial. His brother Hassan, once a coastal populist kingmaker, now holds a national post overseeing maritime affairs under President William Rutos administration. That proximity has given Abu visibilityand sometimes protectionwithin corridors where state and business intersect. Yet those alliances carry risks. As litigation challenges surface, critics allege that part of Johos dominance relied too heavily on political patronage, opaque permits and exceptions that skirt procurement norms. The Supreme Courts 2025 ruling, for example, struck at just such structural shortcuts. In the ruling, the judges explicitly rejected the use of specially permitted procurement as a loophole to bypass open, competitive bidding. The message: even politically connected operators must adhere to constitutional standards. Rivalry, reputation and courtroom scars No Joho story is complete without Mohammed Jaffer, the man whose 30-year grip on grain terminal operations became the foil to Abus expansion. Jaffers company, Bulkstream Ltd formerly Grain Bulk Handlers, has long dominated mechanical bulk grain handling in Mombasa. When Abu entered the logistics and fertiliser space, tensions escalated. In court in 2025, Abu accused a Jaffer aide, Matilda Kinzani, of engineering a smear campaign. He testified that defamatory messages circulated online claimed he was involved in drug dealing, land grabbing or colluding to embezzle KSh 40 billion with his brother. He described how those lies reached his children and wreaked psychological damage. This is not healthy competition, he told the magistrates. Charges were filed under Kenyas Cybercrimes and Computer Misuse Act, implicating Kinzani in four counts of defamation. Jaffer has denied direct involvement in the campaign. The rivalry, however, runs deeper than courtroom drama. As Johos vehicles sought to grab share of grain throughput or fertiliser corridors, Jaffers incumbency felt threatened. Some of Jaffers defenders leveraged historical dominance and proprietary contracts others pointed to Johos access to permits and political capital. The legal judgments now give Jaffer breathing roomby nullifying Johos grain terminal license, the courts preserved much of Jaffers entrenched position. Legal cracks in the citadel The June 2025 Supreme Court ruling is the hinge point: it overturned the Ports Authoritys decision to award land and wayleaves to Portside, condemning the deviation from competitive procurement. It effectively shelved what would have been a KSh 5.8 billion facility, and jurisprudentially warned that no public authority may curry favour through pr
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