Not many are lucky enough to start their new jobs the "gift-of-celebrations" way the German Chancellor, Mrs Angela Merkel, got to do recently. Many world leaders must be green with envy!!! And they should.
Okay, here is the gist (as if you don't already know!). She came to office, as Germany's first-ever woman leader, with a confusing and convulsing post-unification electoral indecision by the voting public. They wanted change but didn't want the change to be real change! They wanted Mr Gerhard Schroeder out but wanted his policies in...or something to that effect! Anyway, we now have a Grand Coalition, so-called because it allows Germans to eat both their political cake and sausage, and still have their economic sandwich. Confused? So are many. But it's a clever dice, I admit.
And then the World Cup! What a blast!! Ms Merkel's Germany rode the beast of failure, and so roundly defeated the skeptics' grand scenarios of ultimate regrets, that the 4-yearly soccer fiesta will never be the same again. All its future will be bench marked by Germany 2006. Period.
If I were the German Chancellor, I will build so strongly, proudly and securely on the massive possibilities that this opportunity beams. I will beam more German Love to the world, in a new and ambitious fashion. I will aim higher and bigger for the German Voice in world development
and spend this new soccer-spurned capital absolutely creatively, and courageously - the true attributes of the Beautiful Game!
How? There are no fixed rules, just some sensible routes. Here:
1) Intensify Germany's positive role in helping to secure the long-elusive Middle East peace
2) Continue the country's special relationships with Russia, China and France
3) Rebuild US-German relations, post-Iraq squabbles
4) Tackle the rising race and creed problems in Germany, and help Europe do same
5) Help FIFA use "soccer-power" to fight poverty and hopelessness in the developing world
6) Invest 100 Billion Euros of German capital/business funds in Africa's microfinance industry
7) Lead the "Global Gender Crusade" from January 2007, as the world's leading woman today
8) Get Germany's immigration right, including an innovative work/study visa regime
9) Visit Cuba and Venezuela for strategic talks, and to help "new-friend" George W Bush
10) Pay an urgent Solidarity Working Visit to Nigeria, in support of "Elections 2007"
11) Help Italy's Romano Prodi get his country's economy back on the "Club Big 4" track
12) Convoke an independent Germany-NEPAD Youth Dynamics Forum for biennial actions
13) Help Third World Writers bond and benefit from the legendary German Publishing world, including state-supported significant participation at the Frankfurt Book Fair & Berlin Festivals
14) Help developing countries recover looted funds residing & hiding in Europe, and elsewhere
15) Be so wonderfully German, and make unification work better by revamping East Germany
16) Export East German "expertise and ruggedness" to the Third World, especially Africa, for agricultural, housing and rural development. Get some innovative "twinning schemes" on board.
For these to work successfully, the German economy must grow. If I were Angela Merkel, this is the time to tackle the tough issues. Just make business work! Don't demur, don't dodge, don't fudge. Germany is important to Europe, and to our world. It is tough to be her chancellor, but it will be rough if the tough tasks are left to politics and tricks. When we get things right, the whole world celebrates.
That is the greatest lesson of the World Cup this summer. As German Chancellor, I will take the lesson and run!
No comments:
Post a Comment