Top journalists land Media Council roles
Veteran journalist and former Managing Editor of the People Daily newspaper Maina Muiruri has been appointed the chairman of the Media Council of Kenya.
ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru made the appointment in the latest Kenya Gazette, published on Friday.
The CS also appointed members of the council, among them Stanley Mbugua Njoroge, Tabitha Muchemi, Tim Wanyonyi, Roselyne Obala, Susan Karago, Patience Nyange and David Mghanga Mwaisaka.
Mr Muiruri said: “I humbly accept the high responsibility accorded to me by the Hon. ICT Minister to chair the MCK with an able team of 8 Council Members – So help us God.”
Ms Muchemi is a former manager, corporate affairs and communications with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), while Wanyonyi held senior roles at Nation Media Group, the last being Head of Content.
EDITING CONSULTANT
Other members include Dr Njoroge, who is a communication and editing consultant who has previously worked for, among others, the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC).
Ms Obala is a senior writer with the Standard Group Limited, while Ms Karago lectures at Daystar University.
Nyange works as an Assistant Director (Office of the Chairperson) at the Kenya National Commission on Human Right while Dr Mwaisaka is a Country Senior Legal Counsel and Assistant Company Secretary at Standard Chartered Kenya.
The new board members were appointed by Mr Mucheru as per the provision of the Media Council Act 2013. They will serve for three years.
The appointments were not with controversy after the Employment and Labour Relations Court last month stopped the planned recruitment of the chairperson and board members.
The Consumer Federation of Kenya (Cofek) went to court, saying that the ministry was conducting the second recruitment against legal provisions and without its involvement.