Obama in Ghana
U.S President Barack Obama, like many heads of state, has Africa in his mind or on his agenda to work with. Africa, many times, is like a continent totally neglected, but the fact is, there is no head of state that could push the continent aside because of its vast mineral resources, which the developed and developing countries depend on.
Obama chose Ghana as his first country in Africa because of the country's peaceful political events on the path to democracy. Ghana, formerly called "Gold Coast," gained independence in 1957, and recently had its fifth successive civilian government elected since 1992.
It is Ghana's political success of peaceful democracy that caught the attention of Obama to choose the country as his first country to visit after his inauguration as the president of the United States of America, a couple of months ago.
The American president was welcomed at the airport by President John Evans Atta Mills, also a newly elected president under the umbrella of the National Democratic Congress(NDC), amidst drumming and dancing at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra, the capital.
"Akwaaba," welcome, says the Ghanaian president to Obama. Here, I can't explain in detail the happiness and the delight that accompanied the family of Obama family as they stepped on the Ghanaian soil for the first time.
In a speech at a fully packed convention center, Obama said, " I have come to Ghana for a simple reason. The 21st century will be shaped by what happens not just in Rome or Moscow or Washington, but what happens in Accra as well."
Obama hit hard on corruption, which has been the only tool that has crippled and is still crippling the economy of Africa in general. He reminds African leaders of the task on their shoulders as heads of state, by taking the masses that brought them into power into consideration.
He called on the Africans to build democracy, create employment, fight corruption, and end the conflicts in Africa, which he called 'a millstone around Africa's neck.'
After touring many interesting places, the president and his family were emotionally moved when they visited the slave dungeon at the Cape Coast Castle. The slave trade was long abolished, but the grim terror was still fresh in the minds of African-Americans who came on a visit to Cape Coast Castle.
The shackles and the chains used to bind the slaves over three hundred years ago are still there to be seen. After his emotional tour, Obama described the slave trade as one of the evils committed against humanity.
He commended Ghana for preserving the castle and those who contributed to the abolition of slavery. He said the essence of the tour was to learn about the oppression that African Americans went through and to interact ancestral lineage.
"As somebody whose father comes from Africa, I'm pleased this visit has been particularly meaningful for me." He concluded.