From all walks of life, they came to listen to US leader

The queue started small, with a crowd of just about 30 people. Then it morphed into a long, winding line of humanity. That was 20 minutes after 5 on Sunday morning.

The last time such a turnout was witnessed at the Safaricom Stadium Indoor Arena was during Kenya’s 50th Independence anniversary celebration in 2013. 

On Sunday, the crowd turned up early, invitation card in hand and brimming with eagerness to hear the world’s most powerful man, US President Barack Obama, address Kenyans.

SPECIAL EVENT

The venue of the meeting is the home of the national women’s volleyball team and also the place where many politicians have launched their manifestos.

Yesterday’s event was different and special though. It was the first meeting at the venue to be addressed by a sitting US President.

By 7.30am, the Thika Superhighway near Roysambu roundabout had been turned into a parking lot of some kind.

Long lines of buses and people crowded Gate 12, which was not open yet. But everyone in the line was patient, chatted with others, or used their mobile phones.

This kind of patience is rare among Kenyans, except when they want something badly. In this situation, no one wanted to tempt security agents here and miss out on the opportunity to see the man himself. But then Kenyans can be unpredictable.

By 8.30am, Gate 12 was opened and the mass of humanity poured into the stadium’s compound, only to join a new queue inside and the final inspection point before anyone was allowed into the arena.

Here, security agents, fully aware of the dangerous times we are living in, checked everything including hair pins, pens, earrings, and phone covers.

Those with disabilities were allowed in first. But they were so few and the policy changed to ladies first and then, expectant women first.

The security detail had a rough time determining how pregnant some women were.

The men lamented. Some wished they were women, at least for the moment.

The sitting arrangement was well-organised, with a pair of ushers at every corner of the gymnasium.

One glanced at your badge as the other pointed to your seat, without even looking!

And there was music in the house too. Musicians Suzanne Owiyo and Eric Wainaina moved the audience with every word that dripped from their lips.

By the time President Obama started his speech, the mood in the auditorium was lively and everyone in the crowd was either clapping, laughing or cheering, including those who had been grumbling in the queue.

It was a moment they could not afford to miss.