Most people who grow up in the slums never make it out, why do you think you were able to make it out?
I was born and raised in Kibera, my life is only but a miracle! A lot of people are privileged to grow up with the dependency syndrome, where you know if things don’t work out you can always fall back on your mum or dad.
I did not have that. I grew up knowing I had no choice but to succeed. I could not depend on anyone but myself, in fact, my motto in life is: if you think someone has responsibility to take care of your life, you are damning your life.
I believe you do not always have to have the answer, you just have to dream and then do something. One of my favourite books is The Alchemist, and it teaches that forces of nature conspire to help you when you make a decision and go out to pursue that decision wholeheartedly. From pushing mkokoteni to carrying water for sale, to working at construction sites...
I learnt to survive and earn honourably. I later on graduated to selling hot-pots and other wares in the city. I did not last for long since my desire was in the arts. This led me to the entertainment world where I started out as an actor on stage and later on had a short stint in film.
While doing that, I was introduced to the world of advertising as a voice over artist, and this gave birth to my career as a radio news presenter and later on as a TV news anchor.
What do you think is the biggest misconception people have about you?
That all I am is a presenter and nothing more. People often want to put you in a one dimensional box and leave you there so I have to work extra hard to prove that I am also a businessman.
You left your job as a news anchor on TV a while back, what prompted the move?
I felt that it was time for me to grow, I had been an anchor for a while and the need for change kept clawing at me. It was a great honour to be on Citizen TV television, to have the opportunity to share a message in front of millions of Kenyans, but after that the only question to ask was how did I look and stand? Did I present the question right?
I wanted to do more, to be the Martin Luther of TV or to have a Mahatma Gandhi impact. I wanted to do real stories that made an impact. I was tired of just having a good show and the false sense of security that comes with that, I wanted to be involved with something that challenged me to grow, plus my mentor Bedan Mbugua challenged me to step into something new. He is gentle but ruthless - qualities you need in a mentor.
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