[DETAIL] What made Sophia Wanuna resign at KTN after 11 years?

 

Sophia Wanuna

After accumulating 11 years of expertise, TV Whiz and Deputy Editor, Broadcast at Standard Group Sophia Wanuna decided to resign.

She offered her resignation within the latter part of April, according to strategically placed Standard Group insiders who confidentially talked regarding the matter, and she would be leaving the television network by the closing date of Friday, April 21.

The news anchor has been missing the airwaves for months, according to a spot check, since the last time she appeared on KTN was during a programme on Spice FM on February 7, 2023, when she served as a guest presenter to talk politics.

Due to her years of expertise, leadership, and great journalistic abilities across a variety of subjects, Wanuna's departure is surely a loss.

Sophia, who is perhaps one of the top political reporters, used to anchor Checkpoint, a political show on KTN News originally broadcast on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. She also served as the main correspondent on The Big Story, a current affairs programme that ran from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. before taking a break.

At the Mombasa Road-based behemoth during her formative years, Sophia also presented Morning Express.

Wanuna has altered the perception of the 'bounds' that are thought to be imposed on women in journalism by covering the political elite, providing live coverage of the Azimio mass action, and forging relationships in hazardous environments.

Her role as moderator of the panel discussion between Martha Karua of Azimio and Rigathi Gachagua of the United Democratic Alliance on July 19, 2022, was a significant turning point in her career.

Wanuna and NTV's James Smart grilled the two candidates throughout the discussion about the pledges they made throughout the campaign and their goals for the nation after the vote.

The press coverage concerning the 2013 Westgate incident and the 2019 Dusit D2 complex attack, when she had to report what was happening as it transpired while searches for survivors were continuing, are two more notable news events on which Sophia put the greatest effort forward.

Few journalists in Kenya have the same level of expertise as Sophia when it comes to live TV broadcasting; she is immaculate and insightful.

"I recall some of the news events I covered that truly stuck, like the Westgate and Dusit attacks, since I was there to see them happen. Despite being aware that your rescue mission is still underway, you are collecting and distributing information.

"One of the most heartbreaking tales included the murder of 40 police officers by bandits. We walked for four hours to cover that with Mohamed Ali (Nyali MP), since the landscape was so difficult. There was actually a stench of death when the corpses were removed. That incident is still vivid in my mind," she had earlier said.

Another pivotal moment occurred when she covered Miguna Miguna's deportation in March 2018 and was shown on tape appealing to a police officer to stop beating up the woman.

Later, after discussing the situation, Wanuna disclosed what she had to do to schedule a meeting with the lawyer.

"Since I had scheduled an interview with Miguna, we decided to film and video the conversation when he arrives for the programme." But he was not permitted to leave after he had arrived.

"I managed to interview him using the small opening in the door and my quick thinking, and he described what had happened. When the police arrived, they ordered us to leave while beating up a good number of my coworkers," she earlier recounted.

She was given the chance to host a programme at the national broadcaster when her career in media officially started. She was in her second year of college when she went for the audition.

She worked as an anchor for K24, owned by Mediamax, for a brief while before defecting to Standard Group in December 2011.

Her love for media stems from her capacity to both convey moving tales and hold political leaders responsible for keeping their commitments.

"When I was younger, I participated in reading competitions and won most of them. I would purchase more books to read with vouchers. As soon as my father started buying newspapers, I too enjoyed reading them. I used to read the news loudly and think that the house was crowded with people," she recounted.