“My wife Kwezra Dian (a Burundi national) has given me Jasper and Dillon aged four and one year respectively and I have the will to provide for them and my younger brothers. They all look up to me,” it was at this moment that I realized most of his painting is inspired by his life challenges.
Underneath his tools of trade, Ombija has his numerous certificates from well recognised institutions. These certificates and previous newspaper interview cuttings have given me the moral to keep going, he says.
“This certificate is my favourite,” he boasts with a certificate he was awarded 1st place in high school competitions by IFAW, an International organization that advocates for animal rights. “It’s such recognition that made me get a scholarship to Buru Buru Institute of Fine Arts (BIFA) in 2011.”
Ombija has hope that the Obama painting would be a gateway to alleviate his colleagues and himself from the harsh climate and have better tools. He wants to hand over the painting to the most powerful man in the world.
He wants Obama to buy it for 2,000 dollars.
“I believe I have finished this painting at the right time. I am a nobody, but I would love to get the right person to get this painting to Obama. I am proud of him. If not, then I would request the American embassy to take it up.”
“I have done it with so much passion. And I want to hand Obama this painting in person,” he pauses looking at the portrait.
US President Barrack Obama will become the first sitting American President to visit Kenya this July.
He will attend the first Global Entrepreneurship Summit to be held in sub-Saharan Africa in Nairobi and will, according to the US Ambassador to Kenya Robert Godec, also hold bilateral talks with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
About The Author
