By Prudence Minayo
The Churchill show-a brain child of Daniel Ndambuki-was the incubator of Kenya’s finest comedians. While a section of these comedians have gone on to establish successful careers in the highly competitive entertainment scene, others have faded away from the limelight.
All that is now left is the hope that they will shine once again and be stable financially. One such comedian is Consumator real name, Peter Wamwea.
Here is the story of his struggles as told by WoK.
Early Life
The comedian hailed from a humble background. The fourth born in a family of six siblings, was raised in a village in Murang’a county.
Education
Consumator was a student at Murang’a High school. He loved writing and was in the process of authoring a book about himself. The comedian traveled to Nairobi in search of a publisher and that’s where he met David Waweru who invited him for a writer’s workshop. It’s during this workshop that he met lecturers from Daystar University who advised him to apply for an admission at the institution. He later on got an admission at Daystar University where he pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Community Development.
Hawking books
In an interview on the Standard newspaper, the entertainment revealed that at one point he had to hawk books to eke a living. He has lived in Soweto and Mukuru kwa Njenga before his big break. It took him seven years to graduate. He told the Standard:
……With the help of some well-wishers and an additional amount from the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), I registered for my first semester to study Community Development. However, due to school fees problems, it took me seven years to graduate. I will forever be indebted to one lecturer who came to my rescue and paid my fees in my final two years.
Career
Consumator is among the Churchill show’s comedians who completely disappeared from the limelight. From relatable jokes, a commanding stage presence to precise and accurate delivery, he managed to entertain thousands of Churchill show fans. He not only got to perform on the Churchill show at Carnivore but was among those who performed during the Churchill on the road edition. While he was not as famous as the others, he gained quite an audience. Some of his videos were posted on Churchill show’s YouTube channel and managed to garner thousands of views. His last performance on the show was in 2019. Apart from performing on stage, he was also emceeing events on the side.
Loss of his friend
Peter was close friends with the late Njenga Mswahili, a Churchill show comedian who was found dead on the rail tracks. Speaking of his friend, he said the late comedian was depressed and in and out of rehabilitation. Prior to his death, the two had met on a Sunday and had plans of meeting later in the week. Unfortunately, the meeting never happened as he passed away. He urged those dealing with depression to seek help.
Life Struggles
In a recent interview with Tuko, the comedian revealed how his finances nosedived and that he was struggling to make a living. According to the comedian, things took a turn for the worst when his father was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He says that as the family breadwinner, he had to step up and take care of the medical treatment. Apparently, he used up every penny and even sold his belongings to foot the operation and his dad’s weekly checkups. The Covid-19 pandemic didn’t make matters any easier for him.
Finally, he moved in with a friend and agreed to share the rent. Unfortunately, he was unable to raise his part which was Sh3000 and was subsequently kicked out.
“I had rent arrears for four months, and one of my friends got tired of me. So one day, he kicked me out of the house at night. It was shameful because people around that area knew me,” he recounted.
Being abandoned by friends
At his worst, he said none of his comedian friends were willing to help him. He reached out to many people for help but only one woman from church answered his cry. She appointed him as caretaker for her Ngong property where he lives and works to date. To sustain his income, he has been doing a number of menial jobs. When the jobs aren’t forthcoming, a neighbor of his has been helping out.
The Daystar alumni says he wants to make a comeback in comedy although it’s not easy. Some of his fellow comedians have been unwilling to feature him so that his name remains relevant. Hence, he is appealing for Kenyans to support him by calling him for emceeing gigs and helping to shoot his content as he hopes to launch a YouTube career.
As his story trends online, Consumator has taken to Facebook saying he has no problem with being a caretaker or a shamba boy.
“Anything that would help me raise whatever money for my dad’s illness I will do it with stride and gratitude,” read part of his post.
Consumator says having been brought up in the village, he knows what it means to struggle. The aim of his story is to show the painful steps one needs to take in order to survive in difficult times.
