Nakuru's ‘White House’ a shadow of its former self down as Obama visits
The "White House" on the Nakuru-Subukia road in Nakuru on July 22, 2015. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The building was once owned by a Kenyan who had lived in the US for many years and who upon returning home in the early 90s, decided to relive the memories by putting up the premise.
- The tables in every room contained the names of all the states in America, where people who had different ideologies in terms of policies and political positions sat in their respective areas.
- As gym instructor who runs the business, Mr Dan Macharia, said he would expect to have a booming business had the building been located in Nairobi or in the Nyanza region.
Strategically placed on the Nakuru-Subukia road, there once was a house decorated with United States flags, painted all white and christened the "White House".
The building was once owned by a Kenyan who had lived in the US for many years and who upon returning home in the early 90s, decided to relive the memories by putting up the premise.
He chose a serene location, four kilometres from Nakuru town on the Nakuru-Subukia road, where he built a beautiful wooden house and painted it all white.
At the main entrance, the house is decorated with several US flags and so are the walls inside.
Strategically placed for guests, and even passers-by, is a list of all the 50 US states.
The proprietor, who sought anonymity, created a beautiful joint for entertainment and he did not go wrong by including nyama choma (roast meat) among the services offered then.
In the early 90s, when the White House was built, there were no buildings around it, but the area has since grown into a middle-class estate, complete with schools and hospitals, that has adopted the name White House.
Many people from within the county and beyond would visit this building just to catch a glimpse.
The building with the white painting could be seen from a distance due to the high-flying flags because it was the only one in an underdeveloped location.
On the roof, a flag was also hoisted, perhaps an illustration of the US power house.
On its wall, the building contained the names of all former American presidents.
Inside, the building, which housed a bar, was sub-divided into two sections, which represented the two major US political sides: the Republicans and the Democrats.
The tables in every room contained the names of all the states in America, where people who had different ideologies in terms of policies and political positions sat in their respective areas.
According to the area residents, the owner of the White House loved the US and its system of governance.
In the early 2000s, the building was sold to a different investor and with the new management, everything changed.
More than 20 years down the line, the house is a pale shadow of its former self. The building houses a merchandise shop, a bar and a gym.
Previously, the building housed many shops, with numerous customers walking in and out, but that changed when its ownership changed to another person, whom we could not immediately track down.
The only busy business here is the gym inside which hangs an old US flag.
As gym instructor who runs the business, Mr Dan Macharia, said he would expect to have a booming business had the building been located in Nairobi or in the Nyanza region.
He said that in such a situation, he would expect the county government to give the building a facelift at least as a way of welcoming US President Barack Obama.
As President Obama's planned visit to Kenya continues to spark excitement and high expectations in the country, there is little such frenzy in Nakuru Town.
Unlike other cities, there are no billboards with images of President Obama but dozens of revellers will go to the "White House" for a tipple as they watch the real White House resident address business people at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit.
