Kenyans' inaugural trip to USA riles some at home

By Zoe Alsop and César G. Soriano, Special for USA TODAY

NAIROBI, Kenya — As the new U.S. president takes center stage today amid celebrations around the globe, an uproar is brewing in the birthplace of Barack Obama's father.

Eight high-level Kenyans, led by Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetang'ula, flew to Washington at government expense while their nation faces one of its worst famines in years — and even though they weren't invited to Obama's inauguration.

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Headlines in Nairobi's Daily Nation newspaper blared, "Fury on the street over free ride to Washington party" and "Anger at
waste on Obama trip."

"People see this trip as a waste of money," says Ann Wanjiru, a community health worker in Nairobi who sees patients going for days without food. "This is making people start hating Obama. Why can't the American Embassy refuse these people visas to travel?"

Kalembe Ndile, a former member of parliament, delivered his own TV to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, saying the trip is a waste of taxpayers' money because the officials will watch the ceremony from their hotels, the Daily Nation reported.

The delegation plans to attend a gala organized by the Kenyan Embassy and other groups. Wetang'ula defended the trip as a way to bring more money into the region.

The trip "intends to capitalize on the president-elect's Kenyan roots to enhance social-cultural ties, attract investment, promote trade, lobby for increased development assistance and enhance bilateral and security cooperation," Wetang'ula said.

Apart from the controversy, people will celebrate with feasts and a papaya-eating contest in the tiny west Kenyan village of Kogelo, where Obama's father was born and where the president-elect's paternal grandmother lives. Sarah Obama, 86, will attend the inauguration at the invitation of her grandson.

Elsewhere, people want to watch America get a new president — no matter the time zone.

Parties everywhere

In Jakarta, Indonesia, where Obama spent part of his childhood, Americans and Indonesians will gather at a free ball to see the swearing-in at midnight Wednesday local time and to watch a performance by students from Obama's former elementary school.

London will hold an inaugural ball for a sold-out crowd of 1,300.

In Antigua, Guatemala, Americans will throw a party with a disc jockey spinning some of Obama's favorite tunes.

Many events, such as the London ball, are sponsored by Democrats Abroad, an official branch of the Democratic Party that has members in more than 200 countries. Democrats Abroad Cambodia will host a "Bye Bye Bush Bash," featuring live coverage of the inauguration and a trivia contest.

Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanöe and U.S. Ambassador Craig Stapleton will host a viewing party for about 1,000 people at the famous Hôtel de Ville. A bipartisan party in Berlin is likely to draw more than 1,500 at the Goya nightclub.

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing will bid farewell to the ambassador rather than holding an inauguration party, spokeswoman Susan Stevenson says. Homesick Americans can catch the excitement at 1 a.m. Wednesday Beijing time by watching television at bars.

"We're going to have a party!" shouts Jean Chu, event manager at Frank's Place, one of Beijing's oldest bars established by an expatriate.

"Many Chinese people support Obama, as we hope he will bring change, especially to the economy," says Chu, a Beijing native.

In Mexico City, the U.S. Embassy invited Mexicans and Americans to watch the inauguration live at its Benjamin Franklin Library.

In Britain, home to 300,000 Americans, parties are planned across the country. Democrats in Cambridge will throw a Hawaiian luau in honor of Obama's home state, complete with limbo and costume contests. Madame Tussauds offers free admission (normally $33) today to U.S. citizens to promote its wax figure of Obama.

Americans excited, too

Some Americans are determined to make it home for the inauguration.

Kenneth Sherman, 72, of Hamilton, Ontario, who helped smuggle U.S. draft dodgers into Canada during the Vietnam War, organized three busloads of people for a trip to Washington.

"I don't normally get excited about things, but it's starting to get very exciting," says Sherman, who plans to dress up as Abraham Lincoln today.

Jamille McCullough, 35, a human resources manager who moved to London in November, has been an Obama fan since she voted for him in the 2004 Senate race when she lived in Chicago.

"From taxi drivers to co-workers to perfect strangers, when I open my mouth and people hear my American accent, they are quick to congratulate me and say they can't wait for Obama to be in office," she says.