KOGELO, Kenya - President Barack Obama's Kenyan step-grandmother on Saturday advised this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner to be of good character and continue to work for peace.
Sitting on a plastic chair outside her compound in the quiet village of Kogelo, Sarah Obama told The Associate Press she believes her step-grandson's surprise win is a gift from God.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee stunned many with its decision to award Obama the prize so early in his presidency for his initiatives to reduce nuclear arms and defuse tensions through diplomacy.
The announcement was met with joy in Kenya, which has a special regard for Obama, the son of a Kenyan economist and an American anthropologist.
Radio shows interrupted their programming Friday, and traders in the market huddled around hand-held radios and touts yelled the news to each other from the windows of local minibuses known as matatus. Many are already decorated with Obama's picture.
"I am happy for him," the elderly Obama told the AP outside her compound in the village of tree-lined dirt roads and maize crops where Obama's father grew up.
Sarah Obama said she learned of the award from Auma Obama, one of the president's Kenyan stepsisters, who called from the United States.
She defended the president from those who say he has received the prize too early, saying it "is God-given, whether it is too early or not. But if you deserve an award you get it."
"I want him to be of good character and do good things and continue bringing peace because I love peace," she said.
Sarah Obama is the second wife of Obama's paternal grandfather. Obama referred to her as "Granny" in his memoir, "Dreams from My Father," and described meeting her during his 1988 trip to his father's homeland and their awkwardness as they struggled to communicate.
She speaks only the local Luo language and some Swahili. Obama has not visited Kenya since his inauguration.
