Barack Obama this week breezed into Africa with the swagger reminiscent of a man who runs the place - cajoling, scolding and even mocking our geriatric leaders, much to the delight of the youth he was urging to rebel against cultural and political conventions. He went to only two countries. But the rest of Africa - and beyond - was watching, and listening.It was a presidential visit replete with familial, even emotional, subtexts. Not exactly the homecoming touted by some, but it was not the typical American abroad, either.There he was at dinner getting to know his aunties and uncles, and being introduced by his own sister as he made his first speech in Kenya as a sitting US president.And the kinsfolk in Kogelo, his father's birthplace, wondered why, if he was indeed such a powerful man, he couldn't hop on his massive plane to come and visit them.story_article_left1At one point in his speech Obama seemed unsure which side of his personality he was talking about: the son of a Kenyan or the president of the US. Family or ancestry kept intruding on his job.Africa likes to dance, and Obama gleefully joined in. That sort of thing by a Western leader has not been seen since Nelson Mandela coaxed Queen Elizabeth into doing a little shimmy.At last the Kenyans had him, even if it was only for a day or two; the country was like a parent who had discovered to his amazement that the son he had abandoned had made good.Would Kenya, or Africa for that matter, have fallen in love with him, or even known about him, had he remained ordinary Mr Obama from Hawaii or the community organiser from Chicago? Probably not. But we like to hitch a ride on a star.Obama's is an improbable story. And it sounds better with each retelling. As a continent which for years has been betrayed by corrupt and incompetent leaders, we're perhaps entitled to a little desire to bask in his reflected glory.He may be of African ancestry, but Obama is a product of his own community. He probably wouldn't have come anywhere close to power had he grown up in Africa. He'd have ended up in jail or exile, if not dead. Africa tends not to allow its own flowers to bloom.Obama belongs to both worlds, without being an insider of either. That probably qualifies him as the genuine article; the authentic African-American.His path to the top was not a typical one. Unlike many black politicians, he didn't come through the ranks of the civil-rights movement.The African-American community is his most reliable constituency, but he was initially viewed with suspicion - if not hostility - when he first ran for office, with Jesse Jackson famously threatening to "cut his nuts off" for talking down to black people, and "acting like he's white".Black leaders were loyal to Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary, Obama's main rival for the Democratic nomination. If there was a script, Obama didn't read it. He confounded the sceptics.His swagger on his African jaunt was probably justified. Now nearing the end of his presidency, he has some notable achievements under his belt. He has cleaned up the economic mess left behind by George W Bush. The Affordable Care Act, probably his foremost signature policy accomplishment, has survived a potential supreme court mauling. He has ended a 50-year diplomatic standoff with Cuba, reached a ground-breaking climate change accord with China and organised a nuclear deal with Iran which, if it sees off congressional concerns, could be as significant.story_article_right2Despite Kenya being an important part of his life, Obama had deliberately avoided visiting that country because its president, Uhuru Kenyatta, was facing an indictment from the International Criminal Court for orchestrating the 2008 post-election violence.The indictment has been dropped because the witnesses have either disappeared or been killed. The homophobic Kenyatta was nevertheless thrilled to host Obama. It's a huge feather in his cap.The spectre of ICC indictments also loomed large at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, where Obama was welcomed by Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma who, not so long ago, stoutly defended the infamous visit of Sudan's Omar al-Bashir to South Africa. But the ugly cousins were conveniently out of sight: Bashir was absent and Robert Mugabe, the AU's idea of moral leadership, was watching proceedings from faraway Harare.Obama's visit to Ethiopia, given its poor human-rights record, can be faulted, and his praise of Kenya was a bit over the top at times. But he also rattled a few cages. It was about time somebody publicly called out Africa on endemic corruption, the hounding of homosexuals and the inhumane practice of genital mutilation.Obama said things that African leaders rarely say to each other.And his presence reminded us once again of the dire state of leadership on the continent...