Expectations from Obama’s second term

By Paul Arhewe

Obama

There was global jubilation when United States President Barack Obama emerged victorious on Wednesday and was re-elected for a second term. However, there are high expectations as the American leader takes control of the world’s leading economy for another four year.

The unemployment rate in US is still very high with 7.9 percent, which nearly marred his chances of retaining the seat in White House. His second term administration is expected to provide millions of decent paying jobs for Americans.

Also, China that is jubilant at the defeat of Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, may have enjoyed a less or non-confrontational foreign policy from Obama’s regime, resulting in the Asian country’s rising global profile.

Obama’s second term will need to formulate policy that will address Chinese ‘cut-corners’ trades, in order to win over the large supporters of Romney’s intended confrontational policy on China’s trade.

For Africa, Obama , who only visited the continent just once; seven months after his inauguration in January 2009, flew to Ghana and delivered a ‘non-commitment’ policy; urging Africans to fend for themselves. He said Africa didn’t need interference and that the continent’s future should be built by Africans.

The American leader also opined that he and his administration would strive to “minimise our footprint and maximise the degree to which we’re training people to do for themselves.”

Obama’s first term, no doubt has somewhat shied away from making meaningful impact on Africa’s development. Even Kenya where his paternal ancestral root originates is yet to feel the expected great impulse of their son’s administration from the White House. His failure to visit Kenya, which he has an ancestral link and Nigeria, the continent’s most populous country, indicates his disposition not to reflect much focus to Africa, as a special case. Then, with his second term ambition at stake, as the first Black American leader, he may have neglected the continent in a scheme to play safe.

President Obama’s administration also played cautiously during the Arab Spring that toppled three governments (Egypt,Tunisia, and Libya) in North Africa by not taking a leading position while the crisis lasted.

He also acted behind-the-scene in the solution leading to the mediation in South Sudan becoming independent.

His administration in the first term, which lacks a cohesive Africa policy and ignoring the plight of African nations, is expected by many in the continent to have a shift as he is inaugurated January next year for a fresh term. Obama knowing that he won’t face another election, is expected to make quite a difference.

Some human rights groups expect Obama will live up to his promise by closing all controversial detention camps.

The American Civil Liberties Union chief called on the President to make good on his first-term promise to shut down the prison camps at Guantánamo.

“We urge President Obama to dismantle a national security state where warrantless surveillance, extra-judicial killings of American citizens by drones and other attacks on our personal freedoms have been deemed acceptable,” ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said in a statement on Wednesday.

Obama ordered his administration on his second day in office in January 2009 to empty the detention centre within a year. He’s been able to cut the population to 166 but has been repeatedly thwarted by Congress in his goal of closing the controversial camps by moving some of the captives to U.S. soil.

Indeed, the president has a huge task of surpassing the performance attained in his first term.