Uhuru Kenyatta’s successor inherits a divided country after a tense campaign. It faces high inflation and a debt that reaches 70 billion euros, about 67% of its GDP.
William Ruto is sworn in on Tuesday (September 13th) to officially become Kenya’s fifth president, after several weeks of controversy following a tight election in a country plagued by major economic difficulties. Twenty heads of state are expected for the investiture ceremony which is being held at the Kasarani stadium, the largest in the capital Nairobi (60,000 seats). According to the Constitution, the president must be sworn in before 2 p.m. local time (11 a.m. GMT).
On September 5, nearly a month after the August 9 presidential election, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the victory of the outgoing vice-president before Raila Odinga, a 77-year-old historic figure in Kenyan politics who had denounced of the “frauds”. William Ruto, 55, beat Raila Odinga, supported by outgoing head of state Uhuru Kenyatta and his powerful party, by around 233,000 votes out of a total of 14 million votes.
“Historic Moment”
The arrival of William Ruto at State House, the presidential palace, was closely scrutinized by the international community, which considers Kenya a haven of democratic stability and an economic locomotive in the troubled region of the Horn of Africa. Independent observers praised the good conduct of the election which, despite a close and contested vote, did not give rise to violence, as the country has experienced in the past. Outgoing President Kenyatta spoke of a transition “slowly”.
The two men, in conflict for several years, shook hands Monday in front of the cameras during an interview at the presidential palace. Kenyatta then “warmly congratulated” his successor. His election validated by the Supreme Court, William Ruto called for unity, holding out a “brotherly hand” to his opponents. ‘We are not enemies, we are all Kenyans’he said in a speech.
But according to many analysts, William Ruto inherits a deeply divided country, after a tense campaign. The swearing in of William Ruto comes at a “historic moment”according to an editorial published on Sunday in the columns of The Standardone of the main daily newspapers in the country. “It is time to close ranks, welcome opponents and forge a united front”, urged the newspaper. Many Kenyans have shunned the ballot box as the country faces high inflation and a debt that reaches 70 billion euros, around 67% of its GDP.
A “resourceful fund”
Coming from a modest family before becoming one of the richest men in the country, the new president presented himself as the herald of the “resourceful” of the common people, promising to create jobs and tackle the inflation that is hitting fuel, food products, seeds and fertilizers in particular. To get the country out of “economic abyss” in which he finds himself, he has promised the creation of a “resourceful fund” amounting to 50 billion Kenyan shillings (about 410 million euros) to provide loans to small businesses.
But the task promises to be difficult for the new president in the economic field, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank. If the Kenyan elections were a “example for the region”the new Head of State must answer “to very high expectations and an economy in bad shape”emphasizes ICG, warning: “Governing will be harder than campaigning”.
This ceremony ends almost a decade of presidency of Uhuru Kenyatta, elected president in 2013 and re-elected in 2017, who could not run for a third term. Coming from one of the richest families in the country, the son of the first president Jomo Kenyatta – considered the father of independence in 1963 – will receive a non-taxable lump sum of 324,000 euros, an annual salary of 600,000 euros and a monthly allowance of 10,000 euros. He will also be entitled to furnished offices, dozens of assistants, bodyguards and new cars of his choice replaced every three years.