Muturi wa Muiru: From humble intern to making waves on radio
Radio presenter and preacher Muturi wa Muiru.
It all started with a journalism internship at the Kenya News Agency (KNA) offices in 2002 where Muturi wa Muiru honed his skills as a journalist, propelling him to later become a presenter and a preacher.
In 2002, Muturi was escorted to Murang’a by his mum to start his media studies internship at KNA, and, the artiste says, he recalls the then station head Njambi Mathu being amazed that his mother had brought him.
According to Muturi, Ms Mathu was remarked that it was unusual for people his age to let their parents bring them for an internship or a job ads this is mainly an age of rebellion where most youth yearn for a semblance of independence.
She commented that ‘how much you will invest in respect for parents, elders and authorities will greatly influence how successful your life will be’, Muturi recalls.
And in for Muturi, this was his opportunity to look past his previous hardships, pursue his mission in life, and “to make it by all means”.
As other interns hit the streets in search of adventure during their free hours, Muturi is reported by his then comrades to have adamantly refused the allure of a ‘festive’ life to a point he was nicknamed “bishop”.
His routine involved waking up early, praying, doing chores at Ms Mathu’s house where he was being hosted, then rushing to KNA offices to hone his skills in print journalism.
Muturi’s humility and the way he behaved became his selling point and it opened doors for him.
To date, he insists that “my life is a testimony of conquest against all odds; a classic case of God arriving ahead of me in my destinations and straightening things up for me in advance to afford me comfort of assimilation.”
In 2003 he joined Royal Media Services and was mentored by Mr Waweru Mburu.
“God rest his soul in eternal peace...Mr Mburu played a very instrumental role in making me part of the Royal Media family. I acted as his errand boy as he helped me angle myself in the media house’s electronic broadcast wing,” he says.
Senior colleagues exposed him to more opportunities in the organisation and within no time, he was on air at Inooro FM.
“To cut a long story short, I have managed to host the Sunday morning as well as the Monday to Friday lunch time gospel programmes doubling also in obituary readings,” he says.
A household name popular for inspirational sermons, good relations with his audience, and his humorous trait have helped him bond with and appeal to his diverse audience, he argues.
“I have seen the hand of God in this career. I have won acceptance by both God and man and I can only count my blessings...I am content.”
A Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA) full elder, Muturi says that in his life he has mourned, celebrated, cried, and laughed...”and hoped in faith too for a tomorrow that is shiny than today”.
His parting shot? Be humble, trust in God, respect all, and above all cherish peace, “for that is what I have so far learned to be recipe for reconciled relations between my life and the turmoil in it”.
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