Obama’s nomination bid draws excitement in Kenya

By Harold Ayodo and Beauttah Omanga

 

As world media reported that Illinois Senator Barrack Obama’s candidature for the 2008 US presidential election posed a "serious challenge" to other contenders, his Kenyan relatives said he fits the bill for the top post.

 

On Tuesday, the BBC reported that Obama’s candidature raised the "possibility the US will get its first black president". Most major newspapers in the US have also carried similar reports since the senator formed an exploratory committee that would help him raise funds and employ staff for the run.

 

But Obama has said he would make a formal announcement on February 10 as to whether or not he would run for president.

 

"He is one of his party’s rising stars, having electrified the 2004 Democratic Convention with a powerful speech," the BBC reported on its website.

 

Residents of Nyang’oma Kogelo village — the ancestral home of the Senator — in Siaya District are confident Obama can be the next leader of the world’s sole super power.

 

Mrs Sarah Obama, the Senator’s grandmother, said his last word during his recent visit to Kenya was about making a shot at the presidency of the US. "Before he left this homestead last August, my grandson told me he would try to be President of the US," she told The Standard on Wednesday.

 

Kogelo residents were glued to local radio stations listening to developments of the 2008 White House race.

 

Mzee Odonja Odum said the Senator should be given a chance to be the first black US president, arguing he had the qualities of a universal leader.

 

"Obama ametosha kabisa… ( Obama is fit for the job) The speeches he made during his tour of Africa last year speak volumes," said Odum, who is in his late 80s.

 

Mr Dickson Ogolla and Mr Charles Otuoma concurred with Odum at Kogelo market centre where youths put on caps and T-Shirts with the Senator’s pictures.

 

 

The excited villagers were, however, unaware of the rigours of electing a US president.

 

Presidential elections in the US are held once every four years. Candidates nominated by their parties raise money to campaign a year before the poll.

 

The nomination process begins with the first state primaries and caucuses, which usually occur in the month of February of the election year.

 

Sarah, who says the Senator keeps in touch by telephone and letters, is confident Obama may move to the White House next year.

 

Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on August 4, 1961, Obama contested for the Illinois Senate seat and beat his Republican opponent, Mr Alan Keyes, by 70 to 30 per cent in 2004.

 

In October last year, TIME magazine mentioned him as one of the Most Influential People in the world.

 

Obama’s grandmother says a battery of journalists from the West have frequented her home where Obama’s grandfather and father were laid to rest.

 

"Journalists have been coming to interview me on whether I am aware of what my grandson wants to do since his last visit home," said Sarah.

 

Among the journalists who have visited the home is Mr Jeff Koinange, the renowned CNN reporter of Kenyan roots.

 

Sarah said her grandson had talked about his interest in leading the super power even before he was elected Senator.

 

"He told me of his dream and ambition when still a law student and during his first visit to Kenya in 1995… I blessed him and hope that he lives his dream," she said.

 

Obama was the first black person to be elected President of the Harvard Law Review before graduating in 1991.

 

There are mixed reactions to Obama’s declaration to vie for the US presidency.

 

MPs Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o, Prof Ayiecho Olweny, Mr Peter Odoyo and Mr Gor Sunguh welcomed Obama’s decision terming it a bold move.

 

However, the Luo Council of Elders chairman Mr Riaga Omollo said Obama’s interest in occupying the White House was a major test for America’s electoral democracy.

 

"We wish him well and if I was in America, I would personally campaign for him," said Prof Nyong’o.

 

"I really doubt if white Americans will vote for a coloured man. Otherwise, I have no doubt Obama has the credentials to be a great US president," said Odoyo.

 

Sunguh warned Kenyans against too much excitement over Obama’s candidature, saying Obama was an American. "We should pray for his success quietly to avoid his being branded an African."

 

Mr Obama, 45, has generated unusual excitement in Washington since he was elected in 2004.

 

Source: Standard, Jan 18, 2007