Jeff Koinange Under Fire for Allegedly Setting Up Activist Morara Kebaso on Live TV
Key takeaways
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- Jeff Koinange hosted popular lawyer and activist Morara Kebaso at the JK Live show on Citizen TV for a conversation about public sector corruption.
- Morara appeared for the show having visited tens of stalled government projects across the country.
- Kebaso’s social media video series “Vampire Diaries” has earned widespread recognition for exposing the gaping corruption in public development projects.
- Morara’s statements on the show were interrupted when Jeff and the crew unexpectedly placed a call to State House spokesperson Hussein Mohamed.
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Lawyer Morara Kebaso’s Showdown with State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed
Morara Kebaso Snr. is a self-appointed Chief Registrar of Broken Promises. The charismatic lawyer took it upon himself to do an audit of all government projects in Kenya.
Following the recent Gen Z agitation for good governance, Mr. Kebaso began a campaign of touring non-existent yet paid-for projects.
His activities in the past 2 weeks have exposed incredible levels of public funds mismanagement.
Morara has appeared in several interviews including Citizen TV’s JK Live as part of his civic education campaign.
Given the recent spate of harassment directed at government critics, there are widespread concerns about his safety.
Morara revealed to TV show host Jeff Koinange that he has received calls from powerful quarters including President William Ruto.
Although he did not reveal all the details of their conversation, the lawyer and local furniture dealer mentioned that the head of state attempted to mediate a ceasefire between him and the government.
It was at this point when Hussein Mohammed, the State House Spokesperson was looped into the interview via phone call.
Live on air, Mr. Mohamed refuted Morara’s claim that he was called by the president asking him to substantiate.
“I am shocked at what Morara is saying. I wonder why he would lie on national TV that the President called him. For the record, such a call never happened, it’s a statement of his imagination,” said Hussein.
The fuming State House official also criticized Jeff Koinange’s professionalism for allowing false statements on a live TV show.
A visibly stunned Morara stood his ground by pulling out the president’s number to prove his claim.
Mohammed rejected the claim, insisting that many Kenyans have the president’s number and that anyone could come forward claiming to have received a call from the president.
Kenyans ‘Send Greetings’ to Jeff Koinange Following Hussein Mohamed’s Involvement in Morara’s Interview
At the end of the exchange, Hussein Mohamed congratulated Morara for his advocacy while urging him to stay truthful.
Morara countered by claiming the state had hired an honest man to lie for them.
” I am so sad that they have an honest man lying for them. Out of respect, I said I will not disclose the contents of my conversation with the President. As long as we have a corrupt president, we cannot have a country that will end corruption,” Morara said.
The epic interview has elicited numerous reactions from Kenyans who progressed the conversations on social networks including Twitter (X).
A section of netizens strongly accuse host Jeff Koinange of colluding with State House operatives to ambush activist Morara.
According to them, the abrupt phone call to Hussein Mohamed was designed to hurt Morara’s credibility and divert the attention of prime-time TV viewers.
Angry viewers have threatened to ‘send greetings’ to the celebrated TV host for allegedly orchestrating the dramatic exchange.
Others have advised the 28-year-old lawyer to avoid mainstream media interviews, as they could distort his message and erode public support.
Below are some of the reactions from Kenyans on X to the interview:
“Jeff Koinange ameishi kuseti watu. Morara and Hussein was scripted,” said @DCIMeru_
“Morara Kebaso should have done what Boniface Mwangi did here! It was unprofessional for Jeff Koinange and Citizen TV to invite Hussein Mohamed on the show without telling Morara. #JKLive,” added @AlinurMohamed
“They set this Morara fella up to look and appear like a clown. The more he is doing these media interviews the more he will lose street cred. Jeff Koinange will get you in a trap and Morara fell right into it, just to make a fool out of you, for impressions and traction,” wrote
@Ritchiepreach.
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