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John-Allan Namu

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John-Allan Namu
Born (1983-01-23) 23 January 1983 (age 41)
Nairobi, Kenya
NationalityKenyan
EducationStrathmore School; St. Mary's School, Nairobi; United States International University Africa; Aga Khan University
OccupationJournalist
Years active2003–present
Known forInvestigative journalism

John-Allan Namu (born 23 January 1983) is a Kenyan journalist who has worked as a reporter, news anchor, editor and producer and as a trainer and mentor to upcoming journalists and media professionals. He is known for his investigative journalism. He is the CEO and editorial director at Africa Uncensored, an investigative journalism outfit operating out of Nairobi, that he co-founded in 2015. In 2023, he announced the release of his memoirs, 'The Joy in the Struggle'.[1]

Early life and education

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Namu was born on 23 January 1983.[2] Namu attended Strathmore and St Mary's schools in Nairobi at primary and secondary school level before joining the United States International University Africa for undergraduate studies, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Journalism in 2006.[3][4] He holds a master's degree in Media Leadership and Innovation from the Aga Khan University in Nairobi, Kenya.[5][6][7]

Career

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Namu joined the Kenya Television Network (KTN) for his internship while in college and stayed on as a reporter.[8]

He was part of a two-man team that formulated and executed 'The Inside Story', a Kenyan investigative TV series that aired as part of the TV channel's prime time news in both English (presented by Namu) and Kiswahili (presented by Mohammad Ali and popularly known as Jicho Pevu). Kassim Mohammed served as their producer on the series. The series featured investigations into current affairs issues in Kenya, from drugs and terrorism to extrajudicial killings and alleged forced disappearances by the country's law enforcement personnel. They aired a special investigation on the death of then Internal Security minister George Saitoti and his assistant, Orwa Ojode in 2013.[9] They had earlier received threats for their work on a tax evasion investigation aired by KTN in the same series.[10]

Namu was also part of the team that produced NTV's 'The County Edition' news program which highlighted news and progress in Kenya's then newly created 47 counties after he moved to the station in 2010 before leaving for KTN again 2 years later.[11] He co-hosted the show on weekends with Yvonne Okwara.

In 2015, together with Mohammad Ali and Kassim Mohammed, he left KTN to cofound Africa Uncensored, an investigative journalism outfit.[12][13][14] Their first major series at their new outfit, dubbed "Kanjo Kingdom" highlighted the plight of hawkers in Nairobi and led to the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators caught on tape and aired in the series.[15]

In 2021, alongside other partners and Africa Uncensored, he launched Shahara, an online streaming platform meant for creatives in Kenya to boost their incomes in the wake of the pandemic.[16][17] Renowned Kenyan boy band Sauti Sol were announced as "creative co-founders" of Shahara in 2022.[18][19][20]

Namu has teamed up with Multichoice Africa for a series of human-interest stories on Maisha Mkanda and true-crime on the Last Door which have aired on the satellite broadcaster's Maisha Magic Plus channel as well as streamed on its video on-demand platform Showmax.[21][22][23] Namu also serves on the Reuters Institute Advisory Board.[24]

In 2024, Namu and his Africa Uncensored team have been on the spotlight over their coverage of the fake fertilizer scandal in Kenya in a documentary that unearthed the scam. The revelations in the documentary resulted in a parliamentary probe that saw Namu and his team appear before the Senate and National Assembly committees on Agriculture [25][26] and resulted in the passing of an impeachment motion against Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi by the National Assembly [27] before a special parliamentary committee exonerated him from any wrongdoing.[28]

Awards

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In 2009, Namu was announced as the CNN/Multichoice African Journalist of the Year.[29]

Namu was a finalist in the Global Shining Light Award in 2019[30] and was feted for his work on The Profiteers, a three-part documentary series that he produced in 2018 that looked at the illicit financial flow in South Sudan.[31] In the same year, he also won the 2019 TRACE Prize for Investigative Reporting.[32][33]

In 2022, Namu was named the Human Rights Defender of the Year in Kenya by the Working Group on Human Rights Defenders and the Defenders Coalition.[34][35] In 2015, he was awarded as the Journalist of the Year and shared the award again in 2017 and 2019.[36][37]

In 2024, alongside investigative journalists Valeriya Yegoshyna from Ukraine and Rana Sabbagh from Jordan, Namu was awarded the ICFJ Knight International Journalism Award.[38][39]

Personal life

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Namu is married to Sheena Makena and together they have four children.[40][41][42]

References

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  1. ^ Wairimu, Ann (2023-02-15). "Kenyan Journalist John-allan Namu's Memoirs: Tormented and abused at a tender age". Press Hub. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  2. ^ "A Lot of Begging – Allan Namu on News Anchoring First Experience – Kenyans.co.ke". www.kenyans.co.ke. 2023-01-23. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  3. ^ Muriuki, Susan (March 9, 2015). "Department holds successful alumni mentorship forum" (PDF). Campus This Week – United States International University – Africa Newsletter. United States International University (USIU): 2.
  4. ^ "John-Allan Namu's latest documentary set to air this January". Nation. 2023-01-01. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  5. ^ "GSMC students and alumni reap big at journalism awards". www.aku.edu. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  6. ^ Ouma, Charles (2024-02-17). "AKU Convocation: Several media personalities among graduates [List]". Pulselive Kenya. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  7. ^ "Citizen TV's Yvonne Okwara & Sam Gituku Graduate With Masters – Kenyans.co.ke". www.kenyans.co.ke. 2024-02-17. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  8. ^ Ombogo, Mona. "John Allan Namu-Why I left the safety of steady salary to bet on myself". Evewoman Magazine. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
  9. ^ Omari, Shazdeh (2013-04-19). "Two investigative journalists threatened in Kenya". Committee to Protect Journalists. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  10. ^ "CNN award-winning journalist John Allan Namu receives death threats | Media news". www.journalism.co.uk. 2009-12-09. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  11. ^ "John-Allan Namu Reveals How Much He Earned at KTN & NTV – Kenyans.co.ke". www.kenyans.co.ke. 2023-08-12. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  12. ^ Digital, Standard. "For the love of truth: Why John Allan Namu left mainstream media". Standard Entertainment. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  13. ^ Ajon, Brian (2021-11-30). "John Alan Namu remembers leaving KTN 6 years ago to start Africa Uncensored firm". Tuko.co.ke – Kenya news. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  14. ^ "Major blow for KTN as John Allan-Namu resigns – Business Today Kenya". 2015-11-19. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  15. ^ "How two County askaris made millions in bribes". Nairobi News. 2016-04-27. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  16. ^ "Allan Namu & Partners Launch Kenya's Netflix-Like Platform – Kenyans.co.ke". www.kenyans.co.ke. 2021-08-26. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  17. ^ "Allan Namu & Partners Launch Shahara, Kenya's Over-the-Top Content Platform – Techspace Africa". 2021-08-26. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  18. ^ Mix, Pulse (2022-03-19). "Sauti Sol teams up with John-Allan Namu on new platform for creatives". Pulselive Kenya. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  19. ^ "Sauti Sol joins Shahara platform as creative co-founders". The Nairobi Review. 2022-03-18. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  20. ^ "Sauti Sol Partners with Allan Namu in New Venture – Kenyans.co.ke". www.kenyans.co.ke. 2022-03-23. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  21. ^ Limited, Kenyabuzz. "With Maisha Mkanda, John-Allan Namu Tells A Side of the Story You Rarely Get to See". Kenya Buzz. Retrieved 2023-10-30. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  22. ^ "MultiChoice launches new campaign to boost viewing experience – Metropol Digital". 2020-01-16. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  23. ^ "Walking through 'the last door' of mysterious murders". The East African. 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  24. ^ "John-Allan Namu | Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism". reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  25. ^ Nyarangi, Edwin. "Fertiliser scam: Allan Namu to name politicians who sought cover-up". The Standard. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  26. ^ "Senate wants Linturi, Kebs to explain fake fertiliser queries - People Daily". www.pd.co.ke. 2024-04-04. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  27. ^ Muchira, Christine (2024-05-02). "National Assembly votes to impeach Agriculture CS Linturi". Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  28. ^ "Agriculture CS Mithika Linturi survives impeachment". Citizen Digital. 2024-05-13. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  29. ^ "CNN.com – CNN African Journalist of the Year Competition". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  30. ^ "Global Shining Light Finalist: The Profiteers (South Sudan)". gijn.org. Retrieved 2023-12-23.
  31. ^ gfaure (2019-09-28). "Investigations From Peru, Philippines, South Africa Win Global Shining Light Award". Global Investigative Journalism Conference 2019. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  32. ^ "John-Allan Namu Makes History After Bagging Coveted Award – Kenyans.co.ke". www.kenyans.co.ke. 2019-06-27. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  33. ^ "Rejected at home, acclaimed abroad: John Allan Namu's #TheProfiteers wins big". 2019-06-29. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  34. ^ "John-Allan Namu Named Human Rights Defender of the Year – Business Today Kenya". 2022-12-03. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  35. ^ "HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS AWARDS 2022 WINNERS ANNOUNCED « Defenders Coalition". Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  36. ^ "John Allan Namu named Journalist of the year – AJEA 2019". 2019-08-10. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  37. ^ Chang, Koang (2019-08-09). "Kenyan Journalist wins media award for exposing corruption in S. Sudan". Eye Radio. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  38. ^ "Intrepid Journalists from Kenya, Ukraine and Jordan Win ICFJ Knight Awards". International Center for Journalists. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  39. ^ "Africa Uncensored's John-Allan Namu Wins Prestigious 2024 ICFJ Knight International Journalism Award - Business Today Kenya". 2024-06-13. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
  40. ^ "Namu and wife mark 12 years of marriage". The Star. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  41. ^ LIFESTYLE, CAPITAL (2010-09-17). "Lavish wedding for John Allan Namu". Capital Lifestyle. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  42. ^ Digital, Standard. "Former TV anchor Allan Namu opens on how he met and married his wife". Standard Entertainment. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
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