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Vanguard - Nigeria: African Stories
allAfrica.com
Doun Kogbara
12/5/2014
Excerpt:
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My favourite stories revolve around Kenya.
The father of my Kenyan colleague was very friendly with Barack Obama's late father; and he has been regaling us with hilarious and fascinating tales about Obama Senior - whom he describes as an immensely colourful character and extremely intelligent lover of whiskey and literature.
When Obama Junior became President of the United States, my colleague was jubilant and took a personal interest in recording local reactions to the fact that an accomplished Harvard graduate who possessed Kenyan roots - and was one of them in a sense - was now running the most powerful nation on earth.
Much to his amazement, not every Kenyan shared his excitement. Obama's family comes from the Luo tribe; and my colleague encountered quite a few Kikuyus who were half-hearted about Obama's victory because he wasn't a Kikuyu!... and some Luos who were equally unenthusiastic about Obama's fantastic triumph because Obama was not from the same Luo clan as they were!
This story made me feel that Nigerians are not so tribalistic or clannish after all. I'm pretty sure that every single Nigerian on the planet would rejoice wildly if a Nigerian from any part of Nigeria became President of the United States! - (bold emphasis added)
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View the complete article at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201412050375.html
allAfrica.com
Doun Kogbara
12/5/2014
Excerpt:
............................................
My favourite stories revolve around Kenya.
The father of my Kenyan colleague was very friendly with Barack Obama's late father; and he has been regaling us with hilarious and fascinating tales about Obama Senior - whom he describes as an immensely colourful character and extremely intelligent lover of whiskey and literature.
When Obama Junior became President of the United States, my colleague was jubilant and took a personal interest in recording local reactions to the fact that an accomplished Harvard graduate who possessed Kenyan roots - and was one of them in a sense - was now running the most powerful nation on earth.
Much to his amazement, not every Kenyan shared his excitement. Obama's family comes from the Luo tribe; and my colleague encountered quite a few Kikuyus who were half-hearted about Obama's victory because he wasn't a Kikuyu!... and some Luos who were equally unenthusiastic about Obama's fantastic triumph because Obama was not from the same Luo clan as they were!
This story made me feel that Nigerians are not so tribalistic or clannish after all. I'm pretty sure that every single Nigerian on the planet would rejoice wildly if a Nigerian from any part of Nigeria became President of the United States! - (bold emphasis added)
..................................
View the complete article at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201412050375.html