Tag: chancellor

Angela Merkel’s re-election for a fourth term underlines her qualities

As the Federal Republic of Germany went to the polls on September 24, the focus of the world was on what would become of the iconic Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The election was held at a time the extreme right was on resurgence. Following the immigrant crisis and the negative passion it generated in the country, it was obvious the election was a plebiscite of sort on how Merkel had handled the crisis.

It is to the German chancellor’s credit that there were no issues that could have stood against her re-election. In a world where the economies keep tumbling daily and the fear of revolution looms everywhere, the German chancellor has managed to keep the pressures low, with unemployment at under four percent and a particularly strong economy, the third in the world, ahead of Japan.

Mrs. Merkel’s emergence was largely unexpected. For someone who was nurtured in the defunct German Democratic Republic (GDR), she managed to break all barriers to a meteoric political ascendency. Yet, she had enough preparation. Daughter of a clergy man, she obtained a Doctorate degree in Quantum Chemistry in 1986, and, following the uprising in that country that culminated in the unification of the two German Republics in 1990, she became a member of the Bundestag (the parliament) in 1991, got appointed as Minister of Women and Youth Affairs the same year and later moved to the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety Ministry three years later.

By 1998, she was deemed politically matured as a party apparatchik to serve as the General Secretary of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). By 2000, she had reached the top of the ladder in party administration as she was saddled with the task of leading the CDU.

Between 2002 and 2005, it was apparent she was destined for a distinct national responsibility as she dexterously led the CDU and Christian Social Union Parliamentary Group. Her views, courage and sharp vision marked her out as a woman of history. Her laurels bear eloquent testimony to her achievements. Except for Helmut Kohl, no German chancellor had before her served four full terms. If she survives the political turf till 2021, she would have equalled that record. She is the first and only woman to have been elected German chancellor, the first to have led a major political party and coalition and the first chancellor born after the Second World War.

Mrs. Merkel is, today, the most powerful political figure in Europe. She has shown that she has enough personal and political charisma to lead the free world in the absence of a stable character as President of the United States of America. Indeed, the charm has shone more in the humanitarian crisis that engulfed Europe recently. She was firm in insisting that tears be wiped off the faces of refugees who trooped to Europe. Even when Poland and Hungary shut their doors, she absorbed the distressed refugees. It was a great political risk when general election was around the corner. And, the ultra conservative milieu nearly consumed her at the polls. The extreme right Alternative for Germany (AFD) for the first time won seats in parliament and emerged a third force on the political scene, having obtained 13 per cent of the votes cast.

The way forward is slippery as the Social Democratic Party has turned down the offer of a coalition. This leaves the ruling CDU that obtained about 42% of the votes with the option of turning to the Green Party and neo-liberal outfits for a coalition to run the country in the next four years. This would test her sagacity and understanding. Europe is looking up to her in the handling of the Brexit and the threat of creeping ultra conservatism. Mrs. Merkel has proved her mettle so far, but how she handles Germany in the next four years would decide her place in history.