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Kenyan prime minister visits Falls, UB
Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga addresses graduates during the UB Law School Commencement ceremony in the Center for the Arts.
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“I believe very strongly that it is because of poor leadership that Africa lags behind in development.”
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Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga Saturday reaffirmed his commitment to human rights and the need for widespread political reform throughout Africa during a combined visit to Niagara Falls and UB, where he delivered the Law School’s commencement address.
From a colorful Kenyan tie worn by a member of the press to the rainbow over the Falls that greeted guests, Odinga’s visit was a festive stop on an international campaign to strengthen ties between Kenya and the U.S. He also took advantage of every opportunity to castigate his political rivals in his native Kenya and in sub-Saharan Africa.
“We cannot continue to blame colonialism for Africa’s problems,” Odinga said while delivering the commencement address in the Center for the Arts. “I believe very strongly that it is because of poor leadership that Africa lags behind in development.”
Odinga was making his first visit to New York State and Niagara Falls, accepting an invitation from fellow Kenya native and UB Law School Dean Makau W. Mutua. Odinga and his wife, Ida, toured Falls attractions, and posed for pictures on the veranda of the Top of the Falls restaurant adjacent to the Horseshoe Falls, widely considered one of the natural wonders of the world.
Seeing the Falls “was one of the most breathtaking experiences of my life,” Odinga told about 100 guests. He related that his wife was intimately familiar with the facts and lore of Niagara Falls as a geography teacher, but had never seen the Falls in person before this moment. Among those present were Kenyan Ambassador to the United States Peter Ogego; UB President John B. Simpson and Niagara Falls Mayor Paul A. Dyster, who presented Odinga with the keys to his city and an Obama hat.
Simpson called Odinga “a powerful voice on behalf of social justice, democratic governance and a peaceful resolution of social conflicts.” The prime minister’s visit highlights UB’s “global reach” with faculty and students from more than 110 countries, including Kenya, he said. Mutua reflected on Odinga’s move from German-educated engineer and university professor to a political career, which culminated in his being named Kenya’s second prime minister in a coalition government formed in the aftermath of the disputed general election of 2007. “He seeks office not for its own sake,” said Mutua, “but to save others.”
Odinga said he was “excited about the cleanliness” of the water he saw pouring over the falls. He compared Niagara Falls’ water quality to certain rivers in Kenya damaged from soil erosion and environmental abuse. “This is a very good lesson for us, which we are taking back to home,” Odinga said. “I am fighting against the environmental degradation and the wanton destruction of the forests.” His environmental campaign faces strong opposition from those who want to develop the land without consideration of the country’s ecology, according to Odinga.
Odinga addressed themes of African democratic reform as keynote speaker at the commencement ceremony. Africa, he said, remains a “great continent with great contradictions … where the bad and ugly run alongside flashes of brilliance.” As a “son of Africa” and firm believer in Pan-Africanism, Odinga said he believed “democracy and good government cannot be advanced” with short-sighted rule from one-party government and power concentrated in the executive branch.
Some African nations have been independent states for 40, 50, even 60 years, he said. According to Odinga, “the [colonial] blame game has run its course,” Moreover, Africa’s poor leadership extends beyond the borders of his own country, he said. The prime minister, now involved in a struggle for power with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki, admonished other African leaders, including Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe.
Odinga told those gathered for the law school graduation about efforts in Kenya to achieve constitutional reform through the separation of powers, as well as electoral reform, which should be evident by the 2012 elections.
Earlier in the day, Mutua said Odinga’s life’s mission has been to fight for the rights of all Kenyan citizens. The prime minister endured great hardship, Mutua said, including three political detentions totaling nearly a decade, largely in solitary confinement. The method of torture while he was incarcerated was “psychological,” Odinga told those gathered for his morning speech.
In both sets of remarks, Odinga traced the connections between the U.S. and Kenya, beginning with the Peace Corps established by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, and the assistance of Thurgood Marshall (later U.S. Supreme Court justice) in drafting the Kenyan Bill of Rights during the same era. The 2008 election of Barack Obama, whose father was Kenyan, only deepens those ties, he said. Odinga described the proud Kenyans who voted in mock elections for Obama and their elation at Obama’s victory. Young people in particular, he said, are exceedingly proud of Obama’s election, not because of his Kenyan parentage, “but because of what he wishes to do in the world.”
Today, Kenya hopes for better trade with the U.S., increased American investment in his country and for more Americans to come to Kenya as tourists. He also urged the United States to address serious global warming concerns, which he explained are especially severe in Africa. There are “refreshing signals” from the Obama Administration on this issue, he said.
The youngest guest at Saturday’s breakfast was Trevor Grode, 13, who was accompanying his father, Ed Grode, writing for the Erie (PA) Times and The Geography Teacher magazine. Trevor had his own assignment for his middle-school newspaper and plans to study in Nairobi. He presented a commemorative gift to Ida Odinga, who said she would happily welcome him to the Kenyan capital. Also in the audience was Patrick Itotia of Kenya, who is studying for his Ph.D. in the UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.
During his visit to Niagara Falls, Odinga was interviewed by Voice of America (VOA) in both Swahili and English. The English interview is being translated into 45 languages that are part of VOA’s broadcast repertoire.
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