25 March 2024

• Rita was shy of celebrating her 46th birthday.

• She died from severe Pneumonia according to a post morterm report.

An ordained Catholic priest has shared fondly of how Rita Tinina's mum kept a tab on her daughter's career.

Mama Rita made sure to watch her daughter on TV every time she was reporting.

Rita who passed away on Sunday, March 17th, 2024 was the last born in a family of seven kids.

Speaking during her memorial mass held at the Holy Family Basilica, the father shared

"Rita was not so much known to me as she was to you.I know most of you have come to know Rita as a media personality, that was the same to me as well until 2016.

When I was ordained as a priest and was sent to Narok where she was born and brought up."

The father said he developed a good relationship with Rita's late mum.

"I developed a passion for ministering to the sick and elderly and one person I would see was Rita's mum, I do not know how it happened.

We bonded with the mother, she was not just a sick parishioner who I would visit but a mother to me.Her home was like a second home to me."

Emphasizing further on how much of a good relationship they had, the father added

"She would involve me in so many things, I became the electrician, the errand boy among other things.

She would talk a lot about her children and especially about Rita who she was very fond of.

I had to exchange my screen with her so she didn't miss a moment to watch the daughter on the screen.She had the assumption a large screen (hers) consumes a lot of power.

They would rather stay in darkness between 7 and 9 but ensure they watch the news and see her daughter on the screen."

Rita was found dead at her residence in Kileleshwa, Nairobi on Sunday, March 17th, 2024.

She was expected to be at work at NTV, where she was employed, but did not show up. Concerned by her absence, NTV management went to her house and found her dead.

Rita’s death was attributed to severe pneumonia, according to the results of an autopsy conducted on Tuesday, March 19.

The autopsy was conducted by government Pathologist Peter Ndegwa on March 19, 2024, at the Umash Funeral Home.

She will be laid to rest in Narok County on Wednesday, March 27, 2024.

Tinina lives behind a daughter and her partner Robert Nagila.