South Africa congratulates Obama
Bathandwa Mbola
5 November 2008
The election of Barrack Obama as president of the United States early on Wednesday will carry the hope of millions of people across Africa, says South African President Kgalema Motlanthe.
Congratulating America's first black president and 44th leader, Motlanthe said: "Your election to this high office of the American people carries with it hope for millions of your country men and women as much as it does for millions of people particularly of African descent both on the continent of Africa as well as in the Diaspora."
Obama (47), whose father was from Kenya and mother a white American national, won a landslide victory with at least 338 electoral votes. Republican rival John McCain received 156 votes. Under the US election system, a candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win the presidential seat at the White House.
Obama will be sworn in as the 44th US president on 20 January 2009.
Motlanthe said Africa, which stood proud at Obama's achievement, looked forward to a fruitful working relationship with him.
"We express the hope that poverty and under-development in Africa, which remains a challenge for humanity, will indeed continue to receive greater attention and focus from the new administration," Motlanthe said.
In his acceptance speech, delivered early this morning South African time, Obama thanked Americans for their support and congratulated McCain for the contributions he had made to the country.
"We have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states, we are and always will be the United States of America," said the newly elected president.
He has promised change for his country, and called on Americans to back a spirit of unity to deal with the country's pressing challenges.
"It's the answer that led those, who've been told for so long by so many to be cynical and fearful about what we can achieve, to put their hands on the ark of history which has bended toward the hope for a better day.
"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America: I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there," Obama told cheering crowds.
Obama inherits a challenging legacy from outgoing President George W Bush, including two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, a major current account deficit and an economic crisis which is threatening to put the world into a recession.
Obama's victory has sparked widespread celebration, with people across the globe hailing Obama's election as a victory for racial equality. In Kenya, Obama's ancestral home, media reports said people had broken out in celebrations and dance following Wednesday morning's announcement.
Source: BuaNews-Xhinua
