Born in 1922 at Gotani, Kilifi county, Ronald Gideon Ngala was the leader of the Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU) party from its creation in 1960 until its dissolution in 1964.
He attended the Alliance High School in Kenya's Kiambu county and Makerere University College in Uganda where he graduated with a diploma in teaching.
He worked as a teacher in Kenya's coastal region and later became headmaster of Mbale Secondary School in Taita-Taveta county. In 1952 he was transferred to Buxton School in Mombasa where he served as the principal.
His family moved to Vishakani near Kaloleni in 1929 which would be his home for the rest of his life. He began his national career after he was elected to the Legislative Council in 1957 to represent the Coast Rural constituency.
Following these elections, Ngala, along with Tom Mboya, Oginga Odinga, Lawrence Oguda, Masinde Muliro, Daniel arap Moi, Benard Mate and James Miumi formed the African Elected Members Organisation (AEMO) and signed a controversial press statement declaring Kenya's Lyttelton constitution on which they had been elected, null and void.
One of the declarations of AEMO was that none of the African elected members of the legislative council would take any ministerial office.
This constitutional crisis led to the first Lancaster House conference in 1960 at which the African delegation sought a new constitution for Kenya.
At the Lancaster House conference, the ban on nationwide African political parties was lifted and the African delegation agreed to form the Kenya African National Union (KANU). Ngala was appointed to the committee which drafted KANU's constitution and at a meeting held on May 14, 1960 in Kiambu, he was elected as the party's treasurer.
After the formation of KANU, a number of smaller political parties formed which represented the interests of minority tribes.
At a meeting of the leaders of these parties in Ngong on June 25, 1960, the Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU) was formed with Ngala as its leader, in opposition to KANU.
At the 1961 legislative council elections KADU won 11 seats to KANU's 19, however the leaders of KANU refused to form any government until Jomo Kenyatta was released from house arrest.
KADU under Ngala agreed to form a government and Ngala became Leader of Government Business and later Chief Minister.
Jomo Kenyatta was released from house arrest later in 1961 and became president of KANU. Under Kenyatta's leadership, KANU won 83 of the 129 seats in the national assembly at the 1963 elections.
On 12 November 1964 six key members of KADU crossed the floor to KANU. The leaders of KADU, including Ronald Ngala, Masinda Muliro and Daniel arap Moi decided to dissolve KADU and join KANU.
Ngala was made Minister of Cooperatives and Social Services in the Kenyatta government. He remained active in the government until he died in a suspicious road accident in 1972.