Alex Mwakideu recently marked 20 years of working as a radio journalist.
In an interview with Betty Kyallo, he said that if he was not a radio presenter, he would have become a tour guide.
His main aim of becoming a tour guide was to land an opportunity to go abroad through the rich, older white women. This is because at the time, going abroad was a great measure of success.
“If I were not on radio, I would have been a tour guide. I have grown up in Mombasa. Watu walikuwa wanatesa Mombasa then ni watu walikuwa wameenda majuu. They come back with chains and gold, silvers, they buy matatu, they build houses. Everyone of us wanted to go abroad because once you go you are successful. I wanted to be a tour guide so that I could get an opportunity to go abroad,” Mwakideu explained.
“The aim was to be a tour guide, get dreadlocks, exercise to get six packs and go to the beach, you get an Italian or Germany woman, wewe hivyo Germany. That was my plan. Nilijuwa sitakosa mzungu.”
Mwakideu admitted that he got an opportunity to work in radio station because of his good Swahili although he had not studied media initially.
“I don’t have an option but to succeed when you know you were just given a chance. I was trained after starting. Because mine is an opportunity and somebody gave me that opportunity I can’t mess. There are so many people behind me who are looking up to,” he said.
Mwakideu first got an opportunity to go live on air at Baraka FM because the news anchor on duty got stuck in traffic.
Related: Alex Mwakideu: I Bribed Police At JKIA To Save My Career
