From radio waves to the frontlines of anti-illegal migration activism

IN 2014, a 28-year-old radio producer made waves in the broadcasting world when she won the MTN Radio Award for Best Content Producer on Gagasi FM’s flagship breakfast show.

- TRIBUNE REPORTER

That producer, Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, had travelled a long road from her early days on campus radio at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, where she was studying supply management.

Her love for radio took her from campus studios to Vibe FM, Inanda FM, Gagasi FM where she was a content producer and co-host, and later had her own show until 2014 when her contract wasn’t renewed.

She returned to Vuma FM, her last radio career to date, which ended dramatically, with a provincial MEC going to court to dispel rumours about her role in Ngobese-Zuma’s axing. She’s not keen to dwell on her last employer but isn’t shy to defend her integrity over her contract termination fiasco.

Today, Ngobese-Zuma is no longer behind a studio microphone but at the forefront of a movement, March and March, campaigning against illegal migration. The movement began as a slow burn on social media in January, where she used her strong following to raise awareness about crimes committed by undocumented foreign nationals.