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The late Leonard Mambo Mbotela kept his family life private, and few knew his wife and children, until quite recently.
Mbotela passed away on Friday, February 7, 2025, his family announced.
He is survived by his wife Alice and three children: daughter Aida, and sons Jimmy and George
The veteran broadcaster, was always hesitant to speak about his wife, only doing so sparingly and without revealing much.
In two interview in recent years with ‘The Standard’, Mbotela spoke fondly of his wife and family.
Pressed about her whereabouts in 2017, he said: “She lives in our rural home. She loves the peace and quiet there.”
He was happy to share details of how they met.
“She was a great fan of my programs, so she came to Broadcasting House to see what I looked like. She was so cute I fell in love with her. I took her round the studios, we had tea, and she sat through one of the shows I was doing. You can be assured I was on my A-game that day when presenting the show,” he said.
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He said his marriage had been good.
“Ours has been a great marriage so far. It has stayed strong because we have involved God in it, and even when I married my wife she had good character. Partners should work to cultivate good character as individuals, because that is what sustains the marriage,” he said at the time.
In a more recent interview with ‘The Standard’ in 2023, Mbotela said: "My wife Alice was one of my best fans. She loved to hear me on air. She often sent her greetings while I was in studio and I would read them out for her."
During the interview at his house in Nairobi, pictures of his family hung on the wall.
Also on the wall was a picture frame of his brothers and sisters namely: George, Monicah, Donald, Betty, Pauline, Irene, and Nancy.
At the time, he said that while none of his family had followed his footsteps, they were proud of what he did.
The nation and media fraternity has been thrown into mourning for the loss of a towering figure in the Kenyan story and history.
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