Citizen TV gutted through three newsrooms in search of top talents and poached three prolific news anchors and one seasoned reporter.

A source close to the new signings told the media that the four include Ayub Abdikadir, a breakout star at K24 TV, Wilkister Nyabwa from CGTN, Serfine Achieng’ from KBC and Mary Muoki, formerly of Metropol TV.

The four were spotted at the Kilimani-based Royal Media Services (RMS) headquarters on the morning of Tuesday, August 2, where they are believed to have signed contracts.Abdikadir, Achieng’ and Muoki reportedly joined the RMS team immediately while Nyabwa is expected to make the transition within the month.

Another source from K24 TV, owned by Mediamax Limited, confirmed that Abdikadir had already parted ways with the broadcaster.

The journalist, who decamped to K24 TV after a stint at Ebru, gained countrywide fame in mid-July when he pinned down IEBC Chairman, Wafula Chebukati, and his CEO, Hussein Marjan, over the vetting and awarding a mega tender to a dutch firm, Smartmatic elections company.

He also exposed the Dutch company’s failure to properly manage polls in Uganda, the Phillippines and the US. The episode was televised in major broadcast outlets among them Citizen TV.

Nyabwa, on the other hand, made a return to the Kilimani-based broadcaster after she left in 2018 for a slot at the China-owned CGTN.

Muoki joined Citizen TV after the shut down for her former employer Metropol TV, while Achieng’ was part of the rebranded line-up at state-owned KBC before the opportunity came calling.

Citizen TV made the hires as part of a plan to replenish its staff after witnessing a number of departures including Raquel Muigai, Elphas Langat, Dorcas Wangira and Bernard Ndong.

Muigai left the broadcaster in June for a role at Africa Uncensored, co-owned by investigative journalist John Allan Namu, while Langat left the station in February for a role at BBC.

Wangira departed the media outlet in October 2021 for a role at BBC ‘to tell the health story on the continent’.