Nation Media Group has fired a number of notable journalists and support staff barely a month after announcing a mass layoff.
The media company shared its decision to make personnel changes in August, in a move which it termed as reorganization its workforce.
NMG insisted that the layoff would be conducted in accordance with the Labour Laws of Kenya and those affected will be assisted to manage the transition.
WoK looks at journalists fired by NMG.
Dennis Okari
Dennis Okari worked at NTV as an investigative reporter and journalist.
The journalist announced his exit from NMG on Monday, December 5 via a statement on his social media platforms.
Although he did not mention his next station, Okari mentioned that he will be moving to work on other projects.
He joined NTV in 2013 but left a year later to join BBC before rejoining the NMG-owned station in 2015.
Mark Masai
Mark Masai is also among top scribes fired from NTV.
The prime time news anchor announced his exit in a statement that he published on his social media platforms.
Masai noted that he was just taking a break and he was optimistic about the future, although he did not reveal whether he had landed another job.
“This is the reality of the media landscape around the world and unfortunately, I was at the losing end of this one
“However, this is not the end of my career in the media, I will be back on other platforms. All I have to say is watch this space,” he told Capital FM.
Churchill Otieno
Kenya Editors Guild President Churchill Otieno was also affected by the company’s workforce reorganization.
Otieno joined NMG and worked as a managing editor and rose through the ranks to be appointed the head of development and learning.
He held this position until his exit.
Other top journalists who were fired from NMG include Peter Ngare who until his retrenchment was the longest-serving managing editor for Taifa Leo and Muthoni Kariuki who served as Taifa Leo Features Editor.
Others are Guchu Ndung’u who served as Political and Parliamentary Affairs Editor and Nation writer Vincent Achuka.
NTV correspondent Silas Apollo was also sacked.
At the same time, a section of journalists drawn from various media stations have called on President William Ruto to intervene amid mass layoffs by media houses.
Speaking on Monday, December 5, the journalists asked President Ruto to address the massive layoffs by increasing government funds allocation to media houses.
“Kenya Kwanza administration led by President William Ruto must understand that journalists play an integral part in countries leadership,” BBC Africa journalist Roncliffe Odit said.
He added;
“When other government corporations struggle financially, the government bails them out. So we appeal to the government since Ruto stated that he is the president of the vulnerable, to intervene to prevent the job losses.”
The appeal comes at a time when ICT CS Eliud Owalo has conveyed a meeting to address the job losses in the media sector.
“We are concerned about the surge in laying offs of journalists by media houses. While times are undeniably hard, and technology is changing, mass firings should not be the first line of intervention,” Owalo said.
