The winner of the August 9 ballot must take an oath this Tuesday, after several weeks of controversy.
Le Monde with AFP
William Ruto is ready, Tuesday, September 13, to officially become the fifth president of Kenya after several weeks of controversies which followed a tight election in a country plagued by major economic difficulties. About twenty heads of state are expected for the inauguration ceremony which is held at the Kasarani stadium, the largest in Nairobi (60,000 seats). According to the Constitution, the president must take an oath before 2 p.m. (11 am GMT).
On September 5, almost a month after the presidential election of August 9, the Supreme Court unanimously validated the victory of the outgoing vice-president before Raila Odonga, 77, historic figure of Kenyan politics , which had denounced “fraud”. Mr. Ruto, 55, was ahead of Odonga – supported by the outgoing head of state, Uhuru Kenyatta – about 233,000 votes out of a total of 14 million votes.
The arrival of William Ruto at the “State House”, the presidential palace, was closely scrutinized by the international community, which considers Kenya as a haven of democratic stability and an economic locomotive in the tormented region of the horn of Africa. Independent observers have rented the good performance of the election, which, despite a tight and disputed election, did not give rise to violence like the country has known in the past.
The outgoing president spoke of a “gentle” transition. The two men, in conflict for several years, hugged their hands on Monday in front of the cameras during an interview at the presidential palace. Mr. Kenyatta then “warmly congratulated” his successor. His election validated by the Supreme Court, William Ruto called for unity, tending a “fraternal hand” to his opponents. “We are not enemies, we are all Kenyans,” he said in a speech.
But according to many analysts, Mr. Ruto inherits a country deeply divided after a tense campaign. His swearing in comes at a “historic moment”, according to an editorial published Sunday in the columns of Standard, one of the main daily newspapers in the country. “It is time to tighten ranks, welcome opponents and forge a united front,” urged the newspaper.
a “resourceful fund”
Many Kenyans have turned away from the ballot boxes, while the country faces strong inflation and a debt which reaches 70 billion euros, around 67 % of its GDP. 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 small people, promising to create jobs and attack the ‘Inflation which in particular strikes fuels, food products, seeds and fertilizers.
To get the country out of the “economic chasm” in which he is, he promised the creation of a “resourceful fund” in the amount of 50 billion Kenyan shillings (around 410 million euros) allowing grant loans to small businesses.
But the task promises to be difficult for the new president on the economic field, according to the Center for International Crisis Group (ICG). If the Kenyan elections have been an “example for the region”, the new head of state must meet “very high expectations and a bad posture economy”, underlines ICG, attentive: “govern will be harder than campaign. “
This ceremony puts an end to almost a decade of presidency of Uhuru Kenyatta, elected in 2013 and re -elected in 2017, which could not run for third term. Coming from one of the richest families in the country, the son of the first president, Jomo Kenyatta (considered as 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.