This archive report was first published on 2 July 2019.
On July 2, 2019, the Kenyan public was mourning the loss of Safaricom Chief Executive Officer Robert (Bob) Collymore. Amidst the tributes, a heated debate emerged on social media, with radio host Massawe Jappani calling out celebrities for sharing private messages with the late CEO.
Massawe Jappani expressed her sentiments on social media, stating, ““So now guys are publishing private chats with Bob on Social media? NKT! Are you desperate to prove association? It was private. Please.”
According to Massawe, the celebrities who shared private chats with Bob Collymore were desperate to prove their association with the fallen CEO. She argued that the private messages were not meant for public consumption and should not be shared on social media.
However, not everyone agreed with Massawe's sentiments. Some Kenyans saw her comments as a veiled attack towards comedian Eric Omondi, who had shared a lengthy text message from Bob Collymore as a testament to their friendship.
Eric Omondi had shared the message in March 2018, after he was castigated online for his outrageous clothless humor stint in Turkana. According to Eric, Bob Collymore was one of the only big names who saw the funny side to his stunt without any judgment.
