Those who grew up in the 90s have an idea of how popular Vitimbi was. It was that must watch program aired on KBC, the then only TV station in Kenya. The late Mzee Ojwang’ and his on-screen wife Mama Kayai made the repressive Moi era more bearable with their funny anecdotes on Vitimbi. It’s this program that gave us the likes of Inspekta Mwala and Mogaka-who forms the basis of this article. The sitcom came to an abrupt end when its producers tried to bring in a new cast. Mzee Ojwang’ and Mama Kayai were replaced with a younger cast. The program lost its allure and died a natural death after over 30 years of entertaining Kenya.
Emergence of Mogaka
Vitimbi had its off-springs who blossomed after years of honing their skills in the program. Julius Nyamberege Mogaka, real names Francis Njenga, is among the actors who used the program as a launching pad to further his career. The actor played the husband of Nyasuguti, a stubborn shrill voiced lady from Kisii. The two gelled very well and have been doing various gigs ever since.
Emceeing
Mogaka ranks among the most sought after MCs in Kenya. Asked during an interview on Citizen TV how much he makes per event he responded: “I cannot divulge that information here as some of our clients are watching but we have rates for different clients”, the comedian tactfully responded to Lulu Hassan question. Apart from emceeing in weddings, Mogaka has gigs with cooperates.
Radio Host
Radio stations in a bid to attract more loyal listeners have been heavily relying on comedians to work their magic. Mogaka is one of the beneficiaries of this strategy that seems to work wonders. He was a co-host at Milele FM morning breakfast show with Vincent Ateya-who has since left-and went on to team up with Maggy Waithera. The duo were replaced by Dr Ofweneke and co-host Ambia Hirsi in 2015 and moved to the mid morning slot. Milele FM is the sixth most popular radio station with an audience of 5%, according to the latest Geo Poll findings. Mogaka was among the radio presenters who kicked out of the radio station after it was acquired by media guru Granton Samboja from MediaMax, Kenya Today reported in 2016.
Commercials
The comedian is a darling of advertisers who are targeting Kenyans “in the lower bracket”. Old Mutual named Mogaka alongside Terry Anne Chebet and Larry Madowo in 2014 as their then insurance questions campaigners. Mogaka paycheck for this campaign is said to have been over kes1 million.
Safaricom: the most profitable telcos in the region seems to be in love with Mogaka and his theatrics. He has been appearing on most of Safaricom adverts over the years. This time round he tagged along his on-screen wife Nyasuguta and their many children. The comedian pocketed over kes1million for this Tunukiwa Daily advert. The advertisers are well aware of his influence on Kenyans on the” lower bracket”.
Property owned by Mogaka
We were not able to ascertain the property (ies) he owns.
Mogaka’s Salary
His salary at Milele FM was around kes150,000 per month. The comedian makes most of his money from emceeing and commercials. His charges range from kes150,000 to kes300,000 depending on his clients and based on our estimates.
He can make upto kes1 million for a single commercial.
Other Interesting facts about Mogaka
He is married
Has twins Next
