When popular vernacular breakfast presenter Njogu Wa Njoroge ditched Kameme FM which is associated with President Uhuru Kenyatta's family for Radio Africa's Gukena FM in the run-up to the 2017 General election, many of his fans termed the move as unpopular and ill-advised.
The argument was that Gukena FM was hardly known and that Njogu was dumping the Mediamax Networks station when Uhuru needed him most to mobilize the Kikuyu vote through his morning show that commanded a huge listenership. Some even went a notch higher to accuse him of betraying Uhuru.
However, optimists were of the view that Njogu's move was insignificant as Kameme loyalists would remain behind and get their leader's direction via his own mouthpiece. Worries were that the presenter would move with his big fan base to the new station. This seems not to have happened though if the latest GeoPoll survey is anything to go by.
Without going to the nitty-gritty of the survey, the only Kikuyu stations that make it to the top 10 most popular radio stations in Kenya are Kameme and Royal Media's Inooro FM. In the breakfast segment where Njogu's show would feature, it is still the two stations that feature.
It, therefore, begs the question, what could have happened to Njogu's big fan base that woke up early to listen to him religiously? Let's focus on the likely possibilities.
Brand loyalty: This is a factor that could have worked against Mr Njogu as there are those who may have maintained that despite the change, they weren't going to switch to another station.
Content: Njogu tended to focus more on politics during his Kameme 'Arahuka' show which had even earned him the title 'Mheshimiwa'. He also had a good mastery of the same. On the contrary, at Gukena he is more of a relationship expert and a preacher.
Finally, Gukena is a relatively new station that is still in the experimental stages as it tries to find a niche in the competitive Gikuyu radio market. You can therefore not put the station at the same level as the more entrenched Kameme and Inooro.