The
first ever visit to Kenya by a sitting POTUS shifted global attention to Nairobi!
International media had their noses and ears in Nairobi. As President Obama
jetted in to address the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) and hold
high level talks with his host President Uhuru Kenyatta, one thing stood out; the
might of the power trappings and security detail around POTUS brought Nairobi
to a standstill!
When
Boeing Bell V-22 military choppers and Marine One hovered over the Nairobi
skies, landed at Kenyatta University and later University of Nairobi grounds,
Kenyans were left in awe! Yes, the Nairobi skies suddenly grabbed a nation’s
attention. The social media was awash with pictures of these majestic show of
power that form part of the security detail to the POTUS! Jomo Kenyatta
International Airport (JKIA) and Wilson Airport had the privilege of having
these intimidating flying machines on their runaways!
City
roads such as Mombasa road, Uhuru and Waiyaki highways among other roads too
have had the unrivalled honor of feeling the armored Cadillac, popularly known
as The Beast, its decoy car and the huge convoy of Chevrolet machines that POTUS
uses on the road! The lucky petrol station attendants at Shell BP in Westlands
enjoyed every minute of fuelling these giant machines! As they described them,
these majestically moving ‘super machines’ simply epitomize the pinnacle of
political power and especially so from the world’s undisputed socio-political
and economic superpower!Marine
One, Boeing V-22 military helicopters, The Beast and the super machines at the
service of POTUS visited Nairobi. They hovered over the Nairobi skies, drove on
our roads and left Kenyans awe-struck! President Obama’s motorcade brought the
streets and roads of Nairobi to a standstill. Kenyans and journalists never hid
their amazement and excitement each time POTUS was being driven by.
To
the students at University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University and all Kenyans who
had the privilege of coming several metres to the machines that ensure
President Obama’s top-notch security, the moments will never go away! To Ms.
June Muli, head of Customer Care at M-Kopa and other Kenyans at Kenyatta
University and Safaricom Indoor Arena who had the once in a life-time moment of
rubbing shoulders warmly with a sitting POTUS, President Obama’s weekend stay
in Kenya was simply awesome! But perhaps
a Kenyan who drew the nation’s awe was President Obama’s sister, Auma Obama!
She welcomed her brother at JKIA on Friday night and rode in the Beast, next to
POTUS! The envy of all Kenyans! She accompanied him to the State House dinner
on Saturday night and also welcomed him at Safaricom Indoor Arena on Sunday!
The humble ride in a faulty Volkswagen Bettle in 2006 had turned into a ride in
The Beast, nine years down the line! President Obama’s visit to Kenya will
forever shine in the annals of history and so will Auma Obama’s moments with
him!
From
Mombasa Road on a freezing Friday
night, the sunny Saturday morning at The
Memorial Park, the sidelines of the GES at Gigiri, Kenyatta University and
Safaricom Indoor Arena, Kenyans took every minute to catch a glimpse of
President Obama and the trappings of power in the air and on the road that
surrounded him! Even on the Saturday afternoon when local and international
journalists went to State House for the joint press briefing from President
Obama and his host, President Uhuru, it was the great moment as Kenyan
journalists even had the opportunity to pose questions to President Obama! To
our men and women of the Kenya Defence Forces who mounted a guard of honour for President Obama, it never gets this prestigious and
befitting in one’s military career!
Yes,
President Obama came calling and the hysterical excitement by Kenyans was
justifiable! The first ever visit by a sitting POTUS to Kenya deserved every
minute of a nation’s attention! From Friday night to Sunday evening when he
finally boarded the Air Force One en-route to Addis Ababa for the African Union
(AU) Summit, President Obama had enjoyed every minute being in his father’s
homeland!
The
very Illinois Senator that Kenya barely paid attention to in 2006, has an
entire nation paying homage as he returned in
a different hat; the President of the World’s military and economic
superpower!
No comments:
Post a Comment