Fridah Mwaka described her poor beginnings in Nairobi, including the challenges she encountered despite being a news anchor.
The media star used to rely on matatus, often enduring humiliation from colleagues who looked down on her since she didn’t have a car.
Despite the difficulties, Mwaka continued to work hard and declined an offer from a good Samaritan to buy her a car.
She recalled her difficulties and experiences as a newcomer in the bustling city. Fridah Mwaka had humble beginnings at KTN.
Mwaka began her career in Nairobi as a news anchor for Kenya Television Network (KTN). However, despite her appearance on television, she faced numerous personal challenges, including the lack of a car, which made commuting difficult and often embarrassing.
She recalled the humbling daily routine of getting off at Bobmill Complex on Mombasa Road and heading to Standard Media Group’s headquarters.
Despite her rising popularity on television, several of her coworkers appeared to look down on her due to her lack of a car.
“There were newscasters who never greeted me because I didn’t own a car. Imagine you are a newscaster. People watch you at 7 p.m. and you are stunning.
As soon as I went into the workplace, I would see my colleagues driving out. I greeted someone, but they never responded. “The person later told me that they didn’t think I was in their class,” she recalled.
The most memorable and painful incident she described was an embarrassing situation in which she had to substitute for a colleague, Ali Manzu, and read the 4 p.m. news bulletin.
Rain unexpectedly fell on her route to work. While waiting for traffic to clear so she could cross the road, a passing lorry sprayed mud on her.
She recalled: “I was wearing a green dress.” A certain honourable member passed by and asked if I was the same person he had seen at Bobmill.
Then I answered yes. At that point, I was in tears. I was supposed to be in the studio, but I didn’t have any extra dresses to change into.
The news was almost here.” Mwaka admitted that she turned to prayer, asking God to help her avoid further embarrassment. “I cried and asked God to save me from such embarrassment,” she told me.
Another watershed moment in Mwaka’s tale occurred when a Member of Parliament (MP) offered to buy her a car worth up to KSh 2.5 million.
The MP, who was a friend of the journalist, took her to a showroom on Ngong Road and offered her to choose any automobile within her budget.
However, Mwaka declined the generous offer. “I am not sure if that was idiocy, but I rejected it. “I was scared and had just arrived in Nairobi,” she explained.
By tuko