Kenya Daily Nation bosses in sex scandal?
Posted by africanpress on June 18, 2008
API has received the correspondence below and we have chosen to publish in order to put a stop to those who silently scandalise others through secret emailing if what they write is untrue. API publishes it also so that those being scandalised, attacked in the mail get the opportunity to have their say and come clean by either denying or facing up to the facts if it is true at all. API
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have disturbing news from Nation Centre, Nairobi , the Hqs of Nation Media Group.
Our very own CEO, Linus Gitahi, who proclaims to be a staunch “Born-Again” Christian, has been sexually molesting one of our popular TV personality on the 6th floor (Nation Broadcasting Division) for the past four months but the victim has opted to suffer in silence rather than expose him and risk losing her job or face unspecified threats issued by the man. The female staff is so traumatised and she is contemplating committing suicide to end her suffering.
I knew about the matter when I went to the Ladies last night. Shortly after I entered the toilet, the lady walked in and what followed sent cold shivers down my spine. My whole body turned cold. I knew whom she was by her voice.
Suddenly, the lady started talking on her cellphone and she was sobbing hysterically. I was scared stiff as to what could have happened to her and I decided to remain still in my toilet to get to know what was bothering her. The lady explained how Linus had been wanting to take her to bed against her wish.
She explained how Linus first met her in our newsroom during one of his routine go-arounds and he started asking her to see him in his office. At first, Linus made the meetings to look officials but he started expressing interest in her during subsequent meetings. He even started soliciting for sex from the respected TV personality.
The lady told the other person on the line that Linus promised to promote her to an existent post of deputy Managing Director for Nation Broadcasting Division (NBD), plus giving her an accompanying hefty perks. There is talk that Linus plans to carry out major re-organisation and administrative changes in the NBD.
But the lady said she told Linus that she was not interested in a promotion and a pay rise if it was driven by his desire to have sex with her. She told the other person that she had constantly told Linus that she was not interested in an affair with him or any other man since she was already in a happy relationship and that Linus was her boss and he was a married man. But Linus could hear none of it.
The lady broke down into tears when she started explaining how Linus had called her to his office after office hours last week and almost raped her. She didn’t reveal which day it was.
She went on to explain how Linus told her that he wanted to take her out this long weekend (Monday is not a working day in Kenya coz a public holiday falls on Sunday). He wanted to take her to Mombasa .
It was when the lady told Linus that she would not honour his date that he went to sit next to her on the leather sofa set and started to touch her breasts. She said she stood up and threatened to scream. But Linus grabbed her and pushed her against the sofa set attempting to rape her. I couldn’t believe my ears and tears rolled down my cheeks as I sat on the toilet bowl.
The lady managed to free herself from Linus grip and he gave up when he saw the looks on the girl’s face. She said Linus threatened to fix her if she dared tell anyone about the attempted rape incident. He taunted her that nobody could listen to her story since she didn’t have any evidence to back her story. He also warned her not to resign from her job because he feared she might spill the beans while out there.
She said Linus threatened to turn tables on her if she decided to go public. He boasted he had good connection with a Brig Ali, I don’t know who that is, and State House. He threatened to fix her, I don’t know how, if she dared talk about the incident.
She promised to keep quiet. From her explanation, the lady came to the toilet last evening after Linus called her (most likely a few minutes before she rushed to the Ladies) reminding her of the weekend date. She had thought Linus had given up after last week’s bad encounter in his office.
I heard the lady telling the person she had called that she was ready to kill herself rather than succumb to sex demands by Linus. She said she would not go for the date and she was ready to face any consequences. But she said she feared Linus could use his influence to harm her if the matter became public knowledge.
The lady abruptly ended her conversation when the Ladies outer door opened and another of our colleague walked in. I heard the Lady washing her face on the sink to clear evidence of her tears. The other colleague who had just walked didn’t sense anything because the Lady explained she was washing her face because she had a headache.
The Lady walked out after drying her face. I waited for the other colleague to leave and I then left the toilet and walked out of the Ladies.
I don’t know why the lady never bothered to check if there was somebody else in the small room. I guess she was badly traumatised and she was going through such a harrowing mental anguish that she didn’t remember to check if she was all alone.
I decided not to let the lady know that I was holed up in one of the toilets and I listened to her conversation. I don’t want trouble with Linus. But I have decided to expose the issue because I believe many of my colleagues go through the same nightmare every day but are afraid to go public. You cant fight with a man like Linus. Who will believe your story? A good number of my colleagues in NMG and in the media fraternity in Kenya suffer sex harassment and abuse by their bosses but opt to die in silence.
For those who are hearing about Linus for the first time, the man is not new to sex scandals. It only last year when a section of our colleagues on 3rd floor (newspaper division) exposed what they termed The Nation Centre Brothel!
The names of Linus and a host of other top NMG editors and executives featured prominently in the sex-for-hire and sex-for-promotion scandal that had the entire world turned on by the sex soap opera for months. But it seems Linus never learnt a single lesson from the international shameful exposure he and his ilk got at the time.
Although Linus was not linked to the sex-for-hire and sex-for-promotion scandal, what shocked many was the cover-up conspiracy he entered with the scandal-exposed managers. The key figures named in the sex scandal were; Linus’ then de facto deputy, Dennis Aluanga, Wangethi Mwangi (Group Editorial Director), Joseph Odindo ( Group Managing Editor), Cyrille Nabutola (then Group Marketing Director) and Helen Mbugua (then Group HR Director). Aluanga, Nabutola and Mrs Mbugua have since bowed out of NMG due to the mounting pressure generated by the scandal. Wangethi and Odindo are still clinging on to their jobs.
Aluanga, still a bachelor at 42, was accused of raping a female staff in the Accounts Dept on his office carpet. Aluanga had also been caught in the act with a secretary by cleaners who turned up late in the evening to clean his office. But he got away with the sex crimes he had done at Nation Centre and somebody close to His Highness The Aga Khan found it appropriate to reward him with another plum job at The Aga Khan Development Network.
Journalists who exposed the sex scandal revealed how Wangethi and Odindo hired and promoted female journalists based on their sex performance in bed rather than their professional performance. It was also revealed how Wangethi and Odindo shared female journalists unknowingly, especially Buzz Editor Adhiambo Odera.
Wangethi, who has previously been sued by a former NMG print female journalist for attempted rape, has a bad reputation of lying women on his carpet. He successfully saved himself from further embarrassment and saved his marriage from collapse by reaching an out-of-court settlement with the journalist who had sued him.
Everybody here was shocked when Linus decided to shield the editors and other managers exposed in the sex scandal. But from the serialisation that was done by the journalists who exposed the Nation Centre Brothel scandal, we learnt that Linus was morally impotent to act on such individuals because he, too, had his own smelly skeletons to hide.
The serialisation revealed how Linus was at the centre of a messy divorce case at the Nairobi High Court’s Family Division involving one Kennedy Kairu and his wife Pamela Nduku Kairu. Kairu filed a divorce against his wife, a former colleague of Linus at GlaxoSmithKline, on the ground that Linus had been having an affair with his wife when the woman worked as Linus’ secretary at the pharmaceutical company.
To back his case, Kairu attached in his affidavit a photo of his dear wife in a compromising position with Linus. Court journalists say Linus has spent a fortune trying to kill the divorce case and the stories from being published by other media houses. As expected, other media houses can’t publish a story of one of their own but the court case is still alive.
Linus was last year accused of demanding sex from a well-known music celebrity in Kenya when she decided to try her hand in electronic journalism at our newsroom. There were claims that Linus was a homo-sexual and that he frequented Nairobi ’s red-light district, Koinange Street , to pick prostitutes during his student days at the University of Nairobi .
When the sex scandal was exposed last year, Linus shamelessly used vast NMG resources to buy employees’ silence and cover up the dirty mess of his new-found pals. Linus and the other culprits went to great lengths to deny what is an open secret within NMG and beyond. Sex-for-hire and sex-for-promotion is the most common tool top editors and other managers unleash on helpless female staff who want jobs or want to keep their jobs or move up the ladder. Female employees, married ones included, will remain an endangered species here as long as Linus, Wangethi and Odindo and other male managers can’t keep their zips tightly shut.
Is this another lie Linus? Many of us sympathised with Linus when his name was included in the List of Shame last year but the conversation in the Ladies last night changed my whole perspective about him. At least, Wangethi, Odindo and the others are well known sex predators. But not Linus!
We all know how Linus traversed the 3rd and 6th floor newsrooms during period ECK was busy stealing presidential figures at KICC in Dec in favour of President Kibaki.
Linus came to the newsrooms every so often to ensure all the credible figures compiled by our colleagues stationed in all ECK constituency centres, which showed Kibaki’s main rival, Raila Odinga, in a big win, were trashed just an hour after President Kibaki was declared winner and hurriedly sworn in for a 2nd term under the cover of darkness at State House. That’s Linus, the man many of us respect as our “God-fearing” CEO!
GOD BLESS MY COLLEAGUE, GOD BLESS MY FELLOW FEMALE JOURNALISTS, GOD SAVE OUR MANAGERS
————————-
Published by African Press International – API
Jee! Wonders will never cease at Nation Media Group.
I was shocked and speechless when I received and read the email below, which has been in circulation in the internet for the past few weeks. It contains a fresh shocking sex scandal involving Linus Gitahi, the CEO. How comes none of the other media houses has picked up the story? Is there a conspiracy in the media to protect one of their own? How comes they are quick to expose other Kenyans but not their bosses? Somebody please tell us!
The shameful Nation Media Group sex scandal, which was first exposed early last year, one sex scandal that has refused to go away and it seems the disgruntled reporters at Nation Center will not rest until editorial director Wangethi Mwangi, Group Managing Editor Joseph Odindo and their shared girlfriend, Adhyambo Odera, the Buzz Editor, throws in the towel like the other sex-scandal-hit managers did after being exposed.
What is most shocking is why does the trio hang on to their jobs despite the wide-spread damage the scandal has done to themselves, their careers and their families.
Imagine what goes on in the mind of the wives and children of Linus Gitahi, Wangethi and Odindo while reading their sexual escapades at their place of work. How do you explain it to them when confronted with the story? Worse still, is when your teenage daughter tells you he is seeking for a job at Nation Media Group and you imagine sex predators Linus, Wangethi, Odindo and the other gang is waiting to pounce on them IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR THE JOB!
Nation guys, please clean up your messy acts!
Dick Dick said
This is pure nonesense. If the lady in question is being sexually harassed, she is duty bound to come out and say. But using blackmail to get her point across is pure foolhardy. Who knows, shw could have been the one wanting to sleep with Linus (and rejected)!
Daily nation bosses sex scandal - Mashada Forums said
[...] Its very long. Please click the url for the whole story kenya daily nation bosses in sex scandal? « african press international (api) "our very own ceo, linus gitahi, who proclaims to be a staunch “born-again” christian, has [...]
Henry saduma said
Simply lies. Why the hell should we have such rumour peddlers around?
Nyatigi said
I have no evidence to call this garbage. It has been annotated in Red and presumably a bleeding if not an angry article. I wish it was limited to black and whit or other friendly colours. Of course it will also be reasonable readable in a lower case as opposed to uppercase.
Thanks, I hope you will take some cue from this!
Tha Slick Nick Mack Daddy Fat Sacks said
Hey all, know I’m late with this but it’s probably coz I’ve been analyzing the stuff contained therein. First off Lemmie shoot off by reiterating a noble man’s cliche’ being what a terrible thing it is for anybody to sexually harass or abuse anyone for that matter, Coz hey !!! that could have been my Mother or Sister.
Not entirely brushing off the rumor as trash, but lets also not downplay the fact that men are increasingly sex scandal targets nowadays especially so being that people get easily swept off by ladies artistically crafted false sad tales and sobs with sheer malice as their sole intent.
For a moment lets all look at the entire article from it’s flip side being how a frustrated/ malicious person for whatever reason may it personal or career related may want to frame an otherwise innocent person with such an allegations and to further reinforce their lies draw several other false incidents/ instances to make it believable or take advantage of other existing rumors irrespective of their credibility for that matter. What especially raised my eyebrows was as to how a media practitioner in Kenya could confidently if not ignorantly act oblivious of the Police commissioner Brigadier Ali as on the extract
“He boasted he had good connection with a Brig Ali, I don’t know who that is”
As persuasive as it is to turn the canon gun nozzle on the “accused” or a more favorite term “Sex predator”, it’s also imperative to soberly dissect this particular rumor and the many others false one’s known to have broken down happy homes and horribly halted careers and persons credibility and not to mention leave them emotionally traumatized for a lifetime with the famous saying “An accused man whether innocent or not is always a marked man”
Also on the same suspicion note, what does Linus Career malpractice of supposedly altering election news reports have to do with a sex scandal(As mad a Raila supporter i am i would be), if we are now sailing in the same waters then it’s obviously noticeable how desperate efforts are from all directions the “witness/ eaves dropper” is trying to discredit the “accused”. Could it be all a coincidence ? well, i leave it all up to a rationale individual to decide, meanwhile ask yourself why the extract from the article below had to even come up on this “sex trial” in the first place.
“We all know how Linus traversed the 3rd and 6th floor newsrooms during period ECK was busy stealing presidential figures at KICC in Dec in favour of President Kibaki.
Linus came to the newsrooms every so often to ensure all the credible figures compiled by our colleagues stationed in all ECK constituency centres, which showed Kibaki’s main rival, Raila Odinga, in a big win, were trashed just an hour after President Kibaki was declared winner and hurriedly sworn in for a 2nd term under the cover of darkness at State House. That’s Linus, the man many of us respect as our “God-fearing” CEO!”
P.S: “NOT BEING JUDGMENTAL OR TAKING SIDES ON THIS, JUST USING MY GOD GIVEN GIFT OF BEING RATIONALE, LOGICAL AND REASONABLE and so should every one else”
Tha Oterohz.
Mzalendo said
This article should be dismissed with the contempt it deserves,simply because the author seems to have issues all mixed up. He/she started on alleged sexual exploitation of NMG female staff, but ended up talking about politics and the stealing of elections in the 2007 elections, and LGs culpability. On that alone, i can only conclude that the author is short of facts, and is at best wallowing in the miasma of vendetta and aimless propaganda, all readers are not fools and can read between the lines.
Mzalendo
ochieng said
Wakenya
Kenya siku hizi ni …pumzi, sana sana CEOs wanachapa wanawake pumzi zito zito sana. Hata mawaziri na wajumbe, wanapiga moto mbaya pale Nairobi. Kwani nyinyi mjui, hata presso pia huko na yake, anapiga pumzi usiku pole pole. Hii si siri, lazima tukubali tu, Kenya ya Leo ni hivyo hivyo tu. Sijaona nchi yenye wanapiga pumzi kama Kenya. Hao wanawake warembo wenye wako kwa TV wanachapwa vibaya na hao wa CEOs
murugi said
what a load of crap! thats the problem with my country-men, your lack creativity. cant you start something new, this is so outdated. ati that chic is suffering in silence?what a load of bull!
Murugi said
Are you sure you work for Linus? you definately must be a janitor or something coz maaaaan, you cant write to save your life!
kosh said
wow wonderful ceo you ve got their at nation centre
Nameless said
This is the work of the gutter press – publishing “really interesting” stories to spoil great personalities. Lemmie ask you guys one question, why are all your stories “soooo interesting”. They just sound too good to be true!
BUT ANY THAT IS WHY YOU’RE CALLED THE GUTTER PRESS
huds said
when i hate u to the core the biggest stick i can strike u with is to talk ill about u.most powerful people v a lot of enemies n they know it n most will be falsely accused of this or that crime.
I guess the nation CEO must be pretty much like any other Kenyan except he has a better job which some fellows dont like
Thanx
alexxy said
YAH SURE GOD BLESS YOUR COLLEAGUE, GOD BLESS YOUR FELLOW FEMALE JOURNALISTS, GOD SAVE YOUR MANAGER
BUT DON’T YOU THINK THE FILTHY WORK OF YOU HANDS WILL BRING YOU A CURSE INSTEAD OF A BLESSING.
this is just an idle idiot : what a crap
undetered said
..I wouldn’t dismis this as crap, though its source is questionable. But if you’ve ever been held hostage by a dude threatening to rape u against ur will, then you might b of a different opinion. Whether this is blackmail or not, no one has a right to demand for sexual offers from innocent employees!..shameless CEOs..tabia mbovu!
Geez said
This is the oldest news. Dating back to Jan 2007. The news was supressed. No one was sued, indicating the story could be true. All perpetrators were silenced. Scary.
wasike said
This is unexceptable. the mediabeing the fourth estate after the judiciary.legislature and executive itas practitioners should not involve themselves in such scandles since journalist work is to unroot the evils in society
Ara said
Why are people so fast to brush the story aside? Could it be because its too close to the truth for comfort? I dont know, but I am surely keeping an eye on one Mr Linus…
g said
Plz just be clear ‘Who are you working for…’ is it an opposition leader… or some nuxz people just like U who want to be the managers? Coz this are GOOD &Well framed rumours!
Nkarumah said
Holy God! This is pure crap of the 21st century. Devil fly with the author of this crap if and only if it is a lie. One doesn’t need to be any angel to see this……..Written big and in red….The person needs frogiveness.
Njeri Mwangi said
Where there is smoke there is fire…. Ishara ya mvua ni mawingu….. It is high time that the Government takes serious steps to protect women from men who are wielding power to pray and devour defenceless young female workers at the workplace.
The likes of sex pests like Linus Gitahi the CEO of the Nation Media Group, Wangethi Mwangi the Editorial Director and Joseph Odindo Managing Editor should be “castrated” without mercy.
It is a well known fact that Wangethi Mwangi set the ball rolling and has no doubt inducted Linus Gitahi and Joseph Odindo in this vice of sexually molesting women. Their behaviour is akin to that of dogs and they no doubt can even sleep with their own daughters and sisters without shame.
The kenyan labour laws is now very explicit about sexual harrassment. Indeed unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual’s employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.
His higheness the Aga Khan the owner and proprietor of the Nation Media Group should take immediate action and sack these sex pests because the NMG Board led by Martin Aliker as Chairman has proved that they are not equal to the task.
Linus Gitahi, Wangethi Mwangi and Joseph odindo should be castrated now to end their nefarious sex escapades!!!!!!
ps said
HA HA HA…. This is unbelievable! what exactly is the editors business? figuring out who has problems keeping his pants up, especially at this times when there are a couple of terminal illness, yes AIDS is managable but why spread it knowingly thats pure rubbish!
Masayina said
What a Hogwash!!!
I am not Kenyan and neither do I live in Kenya or Africa, but all the same I am an African man. I do not condone harrassment of women at work or anywhere for that matter. These women are our grandmothers, mothers,aunts, sisters and daughters and they deserve our respect, protection love rather than humiliation. Let that record be put straight and be known to everyone.
However, reading between the lines in this article I think its just crap if not bull-sh*t. First it does not make sense to me for someone to remain sitting on a bowl in the ladies for 15+ minutes listening to someone’s conversation on the phone without triggering any suspicions from the one on the phone! Second, who was the victim talking to all this time, that she had to offload all this crap? Third, why is the eavesdropper bringing in all these issues about the sexual escapades of the one Linus, who apparently should be a very professional person to me, the way he has been moving around the business world in Kenya.
The story about the former secretary pictured in a compromising position with Linus, its really too good to be true. Frequenting the red light district during the student years, etc, how does this come in? In any case this guy was a student then and this behaviour is common among young men at University, college, army or wherever, not only in kenya but other places in the world. Those are formative years in someone’s life. Some people soon grow out of it but I do not think one person Linus should be painted black and white about it.
The writer of this article should come out in the open about what her issue with Linus is, and not hide behind a finger and make us believe there is a story in what she is saying, there is none!!! Just pure, unintelligent and misdirected gossip, period!! Give us a break, if you adore Mr. Linus, please approach him gentle, make yourself available and act like a lady, do not mislead us into believing something that is not true!
Kamau said
I know in Kenya anything is possible and someone can start a big fat lie and bring somebody down (especially ladies). But having once worked in a media house I cannot dismiss this story. The newsroom is one of the most immoral places to work in. I have a female friend who told me leftie of Daily Metro offered to help her get a job at Nation if she pulled her pants down and so did Cyrus Ombati (I believe of Standard). My former college mates work in these media houses (and give me really juicy stories of the brothel cum media house in Kenya) and at first read I would believe this story. Unless we have been paid to sabotage let us not be quick to slam this lady. The ethic in the media industry is pathetic i would never dream of working there again. I know of a top director at Standard Group who divorced his wife to marry my friend almost a third his age. And some of us here are supporting these beats. mshindwe!!
Kamau said
I know in Kenya anything is possible and someone can start a big fat lie and bring somebody down (especially ladies). But having once worked in a media house I cannot dismiss this story. The newsroom is one of the most immoral places to work in. I have a female friend who told me leftie of Daily Metro offered to help her get a job at Nation if she pulled her pants down and so did Cyrus Ombati (I believe of Standard). My former college mates work in these media houses (and give me really juicy stories of the brothel cum media house in Kenya) and at first read I would believe this story. Unless we have been paid to sabotage let us not be quick to slam this lady. The ethics in the media industry is pathetic i would never dream of working there again. I know of a top director at Standard Group who divorced his wife to marry my friend almost a third his age. And some of us here are supporting these beats. mshindwe!!
Sam Mutua said
I am in total agreement with Njeri Mwangi that CASTRATION is the only soulution to stop this menace by the trio: Linus Gitahi, Wangethi Mwangi and Joseph Odindo from Harrassing women.
Martha Karua where are you…………let justice prevail!!!!!
Make Nation House a safe House for Women to work without having to remove their pants to these dogs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jane Wanjiru said
I AM IN FULL SUPPORT, THE TRIO OF LINUS GITAHI, WANGETHI MWANGI AND JOSEPH ODINDO SHOULD BE CASTRATED IN PUBLIC. THEY ARE LIKE DOGS AND DESERVE NO RIGHTS WHATSOEVER….
Regina ndinda said
its amazing how the things we deserve and want to do the most come with alot to conqure but i beleive that if i rightly deserve to be in the organisation nothing will stop me from taking legal action against a person who wants to benefit by threatening my career life after all if quit or if in anycase he fires me that will not affect ma skills in any way neither does it make me less of who i am.silence and tears never solve anything instead they create space for more problems to acculate, TAKE ACTION!.
phane said
i dare the lady in the so called sex scandal to rise to the standards n for once if the allegations are tru to confront the said ‘born again CEO. is she thinks its going to help. if its tru thn she should not wait any longer. Linus would not dare sack her bcs h would only be proving the rumors right.n u who eardroped why not stand for her the truth is better said than rumors that cannot be substanciated,]. Its bad n it makes the gud NMG loose its credibility among the international meida group. if she is lying shame on her if not then Githai style up. The only prove i have is that ALL MEN ARE THE SAME. with no exception of Githai
ngoji said
this is shocking! but what disturbs more is the responses from some readers displayed on this page.what we have read may be fact or fiction. however that does not qualify readers to ignore it under any circumstances. We should have it in mind that rumors are very important in communication. Much as they sound so unofficial, they lead to fact material ie we can use rumors to justify whether a statement made has some iota of truth or false.