United States President Barack Obama set to visit Kenya in July

Kenya: The Jubilee administration stood firm yesterday amid growing anger over its now famous “list of shame”, even as it revealed that the most powerful man in the world will visit Kenya in three months’ time.

US President Barack Obama will honour a promise he made three years ago to visit his late father’s home country before the end of his second term in the White House.

State House confirmed that the US leader will attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi set for July 24-26.

But even as the news broke, there was high drama as Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Felix Koskei was told by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission officials to confirm the nature of allegations made against him last Thursday.

And as Koskei was storming Integrity Centre to demand answers, his Lands counterpart Charity Ngilu was claiming that only the “best performing” Cabinet secretaries, including herself, were targeted on the list.

State House has confirmed that US President Barrack Obama will be in Kenya in July this year to attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi.

It follows a promise Obama made in June 2013 to visit his late father's home country before the end of his second term. The summit is set for July 24-26 in Nairobi.

It will bring together entrepreneurs from across Africa and is the first time the event will be held in sub-Saharan Africa.

Yesterday, State House Spokesman Manoah Esipisu, accompanied by US Ambassador to Kenya Robert Godec and Kenya's envoy in Washington Njeru Githae, said that during the summit, Obama and President Uhuru Kenyatta will discuss bilateral issues.

"This will be the first time that a sitting President of the US will be visiting Kenya, and the fourth visit by President Obama in Africa," said Esipisu in the brief announcement at State House Nairobi.

Obama conspicuously skipped Kenya during his long tour of Africa in 2013, shortly after the election of President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was then facing charges at the International Criminal Court, prompting speculation that he did not wish to be hosted by a Head of State who was battling international crimes charges.

Obama had skipped Kenya, even as he visited neighbouring Tanzania in his week-long visit which also saw him tour Senegal and South Africa.

Addressing a town hall meeting with young Africans in Soweto, South Africa, Obama noted that his term as president would continue until January 2017, saying he should be faulted then if he failed to visit his father's country.

Responding to a question posed by a Kenyan via a satellite, Obama said: "If in three years and seven months I am not in Kenya, then you can fault me for not following through on my promise."

Obama then insisted that the timing was not right for him to visit Kenya.

In the run-up to the last General Election which saw Uhuru and his Deputy William Ruto win despite facing the ICC charges, Washington had cautioned Kenyans that they would suffer the consequences if they elected the ICC indictees.

President Kenyatta has since had his charges dropped but Deputy President William Ruto's case is still under way.

On Monday, Godec said Obama's visit was communicated by Washington, saying the US leader would use the opportunity to strengthen America's ties with Africa.