Former Reykyulass actor Walter Mong'are, better known by his stage name Nyambane, opened up on experiences he and his cast underwent before their show hit the airwaves.
During an interview on Citizen TV on Monday, February 10, Nyambane intimated that launching the Redykyulass program during Kenya's second President Daniel Moi's era was not an easy feat.
"Many things might not be in the public domain but when we started out at Kenyatta University, it was a problem then because Moi was the chancellor of all universities, and we were told by the administration that you cannot satirise the chancellor.
"This caused us a lot of academic discomfort on the campus. Some of us were compromised in terms of the grading and at that point, you cannot say anything because you have been told to do what you are doing and you are not stopping. It was some sort of punishment," Nyambane intimated.
He further intimated that when they left campus and got into acting full-time, the threats came from Moi's handlers who saw the act as ridiculing the otherwise stern president.
Nyambane narrated that when the cast could no longer stomach the threats, they flew out of the country into the USA to seek refuge.
"There was a time we actually had to leave the country for three months. Because it was getting hotter in here. The people around the president believed that the president was being ridiculed. We were actually scared for our lives and fled to Minnesota, USA," he stated.
He narrated that the handlers approached Mzee Moi with complaints against the actors, but Moi dismissed them with an assertion that the young men should be left to earn their own keep.
Nyambane told Citizen TV's Waihiga Mwaura that for this reason, they never changed the scripting of the show given that their content was not abusive, but rather a portrayal of the happenings at the time.
With time, they got to entertain President Moi in various events including drama festivals and that he became a fan of their content on TV.
Nyambane has since gone on to become a radio host, to working in the County Government of Nairobi and as a liaison for the youth in the Jubilee Party.
John Kiarie, his co-star is the current Dagoretti South legislator while Tony Njuguna is a content creator behind a variety of social advocacy campaigns on TV.
Video Courtesy of Citizen TV
