Media houses have had a rough time covering former US President Barack Obama’s visit to Kenya even before he could touch down at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Police officers barred journalists from accessing the airport and media houses were confined to the roadside where they’d only capture a motorcade leaving JKIA.
Close to an hour after he landed, newsrooms where pushing photographers and reporters to the extreme end just to get a few photos or footage showing Obama at JKIA but none was available.
[caption caption="Former US President Barack Obama alights at JKIA (PHOTO/Twitter)"]
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The Obamas have insisted the visit remains as private as possible and not even State House readily shared Obama’s photos online leave for saying he had been received by President Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto.
The 44th US president was received by CS Monica Juma accompanied by US ambassador to Kenya Robert Godec and Obama's sister Auma Obama.
Obama is reported to have touched down a few minutes past 1 PM at a time television station were torn between giving a live feed of what was going on in K’Ogelo village and the arrival proceeds at JKIA.
A few who stretched out to their zooming lenses at least showed enthusiastic Kenyans details of how difficult it was for them to capture the events surrounding Obama’s arrival.
Before flying to his ancestral village, Obama is scheduled to meet opposition leader Raila Odinga at a top hotel in the City. It might as well remain a closed-door meeting given for State House, it is only two photos emerged.
Citizen TV has been granted the chance to capture the Sauti Kuu official opening by Obama while giving a live-feed link to other broadcast houses.
“The space provided for the media is very limited. Media houses agreed to have Citizen TV giving the feed for broadcast and it is something that has always happened in such an event. Next time it can be another station to lead the broadcast. So it is not factual that we bought the exclusive rights to broadcast the event,” a source at Citizen TV told Kenyans.co.ke on Sunday.
There are just handful journalists who have been accredited to cover the event in Siaya before Obama leaves for South Africa where he is expected to lead Nelson Mandela celebrations.
[caption caption="CS Ambassador Monica Juma receives Barack Obama at JKIA on Sunday "]
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