Prominent Kenyan journalist John-Allan Namu, has vehemently denied accusations of bribery against his media platform, Africa Uncensored, following their exposé on fake fertilizers dubbed “#FertileDeception.”
Allan-Namu uncovered a scheme involving the sale of sand as subsidized fertilizer, causing significant financial hardship for Kenyan farmers.
Bribery Allegations
A social media user claimed Africa Uncensored solicited a bribe from a specific individual.
Namu’s Response
Namu Refuted the accusations, stating they are an attempt to deflect attention from the exposé’s importance.
He claimed to have evidence (recordings) of conversations with the accuser attempting to act as a middleman.
He also Threatened to expose the true nature of the alleged bribery attempt if the claims escalate.
Impact of the Exposé
FertileDeception unearthed a critical issue affecting national food security, especially considering the recent drought. Limited response: Only the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) and the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) have addressed the situation. The exposé highlighted a lack of action from relevant government bodies, particularly the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
Celebrated journalist Joh Allan Namu’s team has been arrested for covering the ongoing #MaandamanoMondays mass protests which are geared to force the government of the day to tackle the spiralling cost of living.
His team were covering the protests in Mathare, an area that is a stronghold for ODM and the leader of the opposition, Raila Odinga when they were confronted by police and detained.
He was quick to note that the two journalists arrested, Clint Obere and his colleague Calvin Rock were not informed of the location they were being transferred to but we have since learnt that the dup have been released.
Taking to his Twitter account, Calvin had this to say,
After being held for 30 minutes by the police for doing our job, they’ve finally released us. Thanks to
Political activist Boniface Mwangi lives to tell the story of how veteran investigative journalist, John Allan Namu saved his life in a clash between the men in blue and street protesters.
It has been 10 years since the fateful event happened but the political activist looks back and thanks a fellow journalist and friend, Mr Allan Namu for being a person he could rely on at his weakest.
2010, the politician got entangled in a wild street protest he was filming, where he turned victim after a stray stone hit his head from the back.
Binoface Mwangi turns victim while covering a street protest
He was covering a protest outside Jamia Mosque, on January 15, where Muslim youth were protesting the arrest of Sheikh al Faisal who had been convicted in the UK.
So City Market traders started pelting stones at protesting youth before a man in the crowd got shot and as he was being carried to safety, Boniface moved in to frame the shot.
Only for a flying stone to suddenly hit his head from the back, sending him to the ground and he just could not move.
Allan Namu and Boniface Mwangi at a street protest
Cases of retrenchments and mass firings from local media conglomerates almost became the order of the day especially after Coronavirus hit.
It is no longer a new tale in the media industry, a lesson that majority of journalists have since learnt and taken steps on in the event that they face redundancy or even for those that already have.
Citizen TV studios
Once bitten, twice shy. Media professionals have now opted for second, third sources of income to sustain their families and even for financial security. However, for those that opted out of the circle or were forced out by unforeseen circumstances, self-employment has become the route to take for them. Let’s get right through it.
1. Betty Kyallo
The sassy celebrity journalist has hopped several times in the media industry especially after her exit from her first home, KTN in 2018, to join rival station K24 where she exited in May 2020. Since then, Betty has been all about her beauty parlor business, Flair by Betty among other partnerships.
Ms Betty Kyallo
2. Maalika Kazia
Late August 2020, the young beauty called it quits at KTN where she had been for the last 2 years in what she termed a new step into a different chapter. The beauty is now into content creation on her YouTube channel ‘Maalika Kazia’ where she mainly talks about her personal life.
The mother of 2 quit her plum job on Citizen TV’s Monday Special show as she went into maternity but never returned, where she soon after launched her book My First Time and has since been doing all sorts of gigs including running her enterprise Inua Dada.
The popular investigative journalist resigned from KTN in 2015 after multiple frustrations, to start his own investigative documentary series Africa Uncensored.
John Allan Namu
8. Terryanne Chebet
Terry was fired from Royal Media Services owned TV station Citizen TV in 2016, a move that totally broke her down for months before fully taking up her business empire, Keyara organics, that she had founded in 2014. She however currently holds multiple power positions in different entities.
John Allan Namu and his friend, Nyali MP’s Mohamed Ali, are set to make a grand return to the TV screens after signing a lucrative deal with a new TV station.
According to sources, the two, who are popularly known for their successful investigative show Jicho Pevu, will return on TV47, a new channel owned by Mt Kenya University founder Simon Gicharu but through Cape Media as the mother company.
Ali first hinted about this after announcing his comeback on TV.
“A camera as revolutionary as you are! I am coming. New station, new deal. Guess who’s coming to dinner?” Mohammed said through his verified Twitter handle on Friday, May 3.
Gicharu revealed the Swahili show will be re branded to Jicho Pevu47 and much of it will focus on the untold but relatable stories.
Not excited
Kenyans however have not being anticipating for its comeback. Kenyans online bashed the politician saying that he’s just like all the other and there’s no way in the world he will expose his “friends” when he returns.
John Allan Namu officially left KTN sometimes in November 2015 after working at the Mombasa road-based media house for close to a decade.
Namu is best known for his partnership with Mohammed Ali on Jicho Pevu and Inside Story, a series on KTN that went behind the scenes to uncover stories of corruption and impunity in Kenya.
After leaving KTN, Namu partnered with Kassim Mohammed, Mohammed Ali and Wanjala Were to start their own media company – Africa Uncensored.
Why quit?
Speaking during an interview on Radio Maisha, Namu revealed what pushed him to quit KTN and start his own media company.
He explained that he wasn’t satisfied with how things were working out at KTN and the larger mainstream media, so he opted to start his own media company to do things in his own way.
John Allan Namu at Radio Maisha
“I wasn’t satisfied with the way mainstream media was covering things. na kulikuwa na vitu hazikuenda poa huku and so it hurt me that I wasn’t able to do it especially in a company that I had dreamed of working for,” said Namu.
As more and more Kenyans get the inside story on how they were manipulated by British’s data company Cambridge Analytica to vote for Uhuru Kenyatta, other dark secrets that have been treats as facts are also emerging.
Former news anchor Allan Namu, who has been hitting the headlines hard with many accusing his company, Africa Uncensored, for working with Cambridge Analytica to manipulate the data in 2013 and 2017 elections, has denied the allegations completely.
Never bought a Range Rover
Namu also clarified one more thing that has been circulating but is not true; he doesn’t have a Range Rover, nor did he ever buy one despite rumors that he bought one for his birthday, for 15 million shillings allegedly got after working with Analytica.
Allan after posting the Range Rover
” I do not own a Range Rover, nor do any of the members of my immediate family. Standing in front of a car does not mean that a person owns it. I have repeatedly stated this, but given that the story was mischaracterized by gossip blogs who have no interest in finding…… the truth, a lie has been spun repeatedly,” he said.
Adding:
“The false parallels being drawn between myself, my company and Cambridge Analytica are not just false, they are defamatory. They are meant to put Africa Uncensored’s, and indeed my own credibility in doubt, and endanger the livelihoods of the employees of Africa Uncensored.”
Cambridge Analytica has been exposed for influencing 2013 and 2017 Kenyan presidential election. John Allan Namu has been forced to issue a statement after his company was linked to the British data mining company.
Cambridge Analytica has caused a storm across the world after its top bosses were caught on tape confessing to using underhand tricks to influence elections for its clients.
John Allan Namu has come out to deny claims that his company – Africa Uncensored was contracted by Cambridge Analytica to work on president Uhuru Kenyatta’s campaign in the 2017 presidential election.
John Allan Namu ni wembe! The popular investigative journalist seduced his former boss who is older than him and ended up marrying her.
For starters, John Allan Namu is married to Sheena Makena. The couple walked down the aisle sometimes in September 2010 and are now blessed with four children.
John and Sheena’s love affair started when they were both working at KTN. He was only an intern at Standard Group while Sheen was an editor.
“When were started working together at KTN, I was an intern and i was scared… And she was a scary editor like anybody who remembers Makena was like “if you don’t have your time codes get out’ you know. And interestingly enough we just started to vibe and we talked a lot like when we were in the edit suite we had a lot of stories. I would often get late, a lot of my stories would run late because we were talking and that sort of thing,” John Allan Namu narrated during an interview with Ebru TV.
Age is only a number
Sheena Makena and John Allan Namu
Namu and Sheena also address age difference during the interview. Namu’s wife is three years older than him but the couple assets that the age gap hasn’t really been an issue in their marriage.
“The age difference is really not something that is even very obvious to us. We only remember it when now we are filling in forms, stuff like that. We think more less the same, i don’t,” Sheena Makena stated.
“This sounds like a PR statement but we have four kids and you know, she doesn’t look like she is three years older than me. I don’t feel that age difference. In fact at times i feel like am the older one. Of late am the boring one, it’s never really been a factor,” said Namu.
Clandestine affair
Namu also kicked off his love affair with Sheena while he was still in a relationship with another woman. He even impregnated Sheena before ending his relationship with the girl he was dating.
“At the time that she got pregnant (Sheena) i had to come clean with my girlfriend, with my family and that was very tough but was also cathartic. That when i really knew who my friends were. And that really sort of shook me and solidify me. The circle of people who i have around me today probably by and large are the people who, whereas they told me like ‘you guy you messed up but this is the way to go’, those are the people who are now with me and in part are our friends,” said Namu.
Former news anchor Allan Namu proposed to his wife and former boss, Sheena Makena, twice.
Makena and Namu exchanged vows 8 years ago as some 650 guests watched in Limuru. During an interview with Ebru TV, the couple opened up about their love life with Makena sharing that her man proposed twice.
That’s how much in love he’s fallen for her:
“He proposed twice. We don’t really talk about the proposal because it’s kind of a private moment, it was like super private. But it was really at a time when we were both ourselves and there was really no hoo-ha around it,” said Makena.
Namu and Makena
She continued:
“And he asked me to marry him and I remember the first thing I asked him was ‘Are you serious?’ Because at even that point I wasn’t absolutely sure that this is what we should be doing and I had a lot of uncertainty whether we were doing for the right reason. Is he doing it because he feels that he needs to as he doesn’t want to shirk responsibility or is he doing it because he does truly care about me and about our baby?”
About the proposal, Namu said it was simple. Wasn’t fancy at all.
“About the proposal, it wasn’t like a wham-bam, ati ooh I fly you to this remote destination and you turn around and there is this big ring and there are doves. I am not that kind of person. I think I can be romantic but at that point, I just wanted to be sincere.”
John Allan Namu is the new owner of a 2017 Range Rover. The popular investigative journalist was gifted the British machine during his birthday.
Namu recently turned 35 and his loved ones decided to make his birthday special. The former KTN journalist took to social media to show how his 35th birthday was the best ever.
Namu shared photos of his birthday present. He posed in front of a 2017 Range Rover and captioned the photo ‘Check out that sweet birthday present!’
Personal life private
John Allan Namu has managed to keep his personal life private. He didn’t disclose who gifted him the Range Rover but the best guess will be his wife Sheena Makena Namu.
Namu and Sheena walked down the aisle with on September 17th 2010. Seven years down the line they are blessed with three beautiful children.
Corruption has been rife in the Kenyan parliament for decades, most MPs elected based on integrity easily fall into the trap. John Allan Namu is however confident that his friend Mohammed Ali won’t be corrupted by parliament’s underdealing.
Sometimes in June this year, Sirisia MP John Waluke admitted to taking bribes. Waluke confessed that corruption had been rife in the 11th and previous parliaments; he admitted that he received money and had never refused to take bribe when offered.
Influential politicians and oligarchs usually offer MPs handouts in the guise of lobbying them to debate or vote in a way that favors their interests.
John Allan Namu is however confident that Nyali MP Mohammed Ali won’t fall into the trap of accepting bribes to promote the interests of a few people.
John Allan Namu and Mohammed Ali
Namu cited the case of his investigative story with Mohammed Ali where officials from Track It company (car tracking company) offered them $10,000 or Kes 1 million bribe to kill a story.
“Eleven years ago Moha and I did a story that would transform our careers forever. The conversation that preceded the clip from which this screenshot was taken was one of the most memorable of the many we’ve had since. I won’t go into the details but on that day I became even more convinced that Moha was doing his thing for the people. He could have very easily taken the money. Now he is in a house where inducements like these will be far greater than the 10000 USD we were offered to kill this story all those years ago. I am still convinced that @mohajichopevu won’t be swayed by them. Now it is me who has to draw a line between friendship and keeping this young man accountable. Good luck Moha, we will be watching!” John Allan Namu wrote.
