A man from Dandora in Nairobi has named his son after Sportpesa, a popular betting firm in Kenya. He works as a ‘jua kali’ artisan and he claims to have a house and a baby thanks to the betting firm.

Life was tough for him when he came to Nairobi seeking greener pastures. He had a wife to fend for and when life became unbearably hard he begun working in construction sites.

At the same time, they were expecting a baby at that time of meager means. With nothing to lose he decided to try his hand at betting.

Huge bill

When the baby was delivered, he had no money to settle the hospital bill. But he kept on placing bets in the hope of getting lucky. That’s how he finally managed to clear the hospital bill. In fact, he calls his son SportPesa.

“I’m one guy who is alive because of betting. As we speak, I have a one-year-old son whose name is SportPesa because were it not for SportPesa, I wouldn’t have managed to pay the hospital bill and take care of the baby,” he said.

20,000

Ojijo, continued betting until he saved enough money to build a house at their Rongo rural home. He won Sh20,000 four times in a row; money which was enough for him to erect a one-bedroom house.

“Age was catching up with me and I was a worried man since I didn’t have a house at home. But from SportPesa I once (in 2015) won Sh20,000 and immediately invested that in erecting a house at home. I can now say that I’m a happy man thanks to betting,” he said.