Fame too much for Gran Obama

2008-12-05 14:10

Nairobi - Barack Obama's Kenyan grandmother is struggling to cope with her new celebrity status as visitors flock to her home in a small village in western Kenya, reports said on Friday.

Sarah Obama is receiving up to 500 guests per day, ten times more than before her grandson won the US presidential elections, the Daily Standard reported.

"The visitors are many and I do not even have time to go to my kitchen to cook as I used to do," she bemoaned.

Kogelo village, where Obama's late father grew up, has been transformed by president-elect Obama's journey to the White House.

The government has installed electricity and fences at the Obama home and a police post has been set up to keep constant guard.

The nearest airport, at Kisumu, is to be upgraded to allow Air Force One to land.

Obama's father abandoned his son when he was two years old and the president-elect has only visited Kenya a handful of times,

Barack Obama is nonetheless considered a hero in the East African nation. - Sapa-dpa

- SAPA