By Eli Odaga
TV personality Erick Njoka is one of the biggest names in the Kenyattta owned K24. The news anchor has come a long way, from rejection (on his first TV appearance) to the seasoned TV personality that he is today.
Having come from a fairly well to do background, Eric Njoka’s journey to greatness has not been that thorny, the only hurdle he faced was convincing his dad to allow him into the media world. His father served in parliament as a nominated MP.
Complications After Birth
Eric Njoka was born in 1986 with a condition that nearly cost his life. The TV man recalled how he was subjected to a series of surgical operations to save his life. The anchorman -as he normally refers himself-undergone seven surgeries since he was 2 months until he attained 17 years.
Education
Eric Njoka schooled at St. Josephs High School in Githunguri, Kiambu County before joining Tangaza College for his Diploma in Social Communication. He initially intended to graduate with a degree but resorted for a Diploma after setting feet into the journalism world whilst studying.
Age
Eric Njoka was born on January 5, 1986. He is currently aged 34 years.
Career
Eric Njoka began his career in 2008 at the Mediamax-owned K24 where he interned as a reporter for four months before getting fully contracted to work with the media house. He thereafter (in 2011) transitioned to Standard Group’s KTN where he worked as a full time news anchor alongside likes of (among others) Lindah Ogutu, Dennis Okari and Wilkister Nyabwa. In 2013, Eric was unceremoniously dismissed from KTN . The period that followed the sacking made him get back to working at his father’s morgue until 2014 when he secured a contract with Mediamax.
At K24, Njoka had been co-anchoring The Evening Edition with Karen Karimi until late last year when he joined the TV’s editorial team following a restructuring that saw a massive number of journalists being shown the door owing to the tough economic times.
Marriage
Eric Njoka has no issue remaining a bachelor, reiterating he doesn’t intend to see anyone any time soon. The TV hunk had been dating back in the years when he was rising as a TV star. Things however seem not to have looked up for him and his lover prompting their break up. Njoka has vowed to be single for the rest of his life.
Controversies
The journalist was implicated in gayism. He was thought to be gay but came out to clear his name saying it had been a scheme by a group of extortionists who had tried to fleece him money.
He told Sarah Ibrahim of a plan hatched to extort from him;
“…Rumours that I am gay and yes I will talk about it. In 2016 some guy just decided to get some money from this n*gga who looks like he is so moneyed, from this anchor who is so flamboyant. So what does he do? He collaborates with a friend and colleague in one of the universities here. Forms a profile and gets all my pictures and gets a picture of the penis or something, shares with friends and then calls me and promised to leak the information (if I don’t pay)… I said whatever, do what you gotta do. I thought he was playing with me. It’s a person I have never met or interacted with, he sounded really old, sounded so Somali (I am sorry) and he was so confident about it. He said that if I didn’t give him Sh60,000 he would expose me,”
In 2018, Eric shocked many after he disclosed that he doubles up as a mortician in a family owned morgue. He said the business had been set by his late father who passionately wanted him to inherit before outsmarting him by joining the journalism world.
He still juggles working in the morgue and editing in the newsroom.
