Kagame sworn in as Rwandan president for fourth term

Rwandan President Paul Kagame was sworn in yesterday for a fourth five-year term after winning last month’s elections with an overwhelming majority of votes.
Kagame pledged, in a speech during the inauguration ceremony, to “preserve peace and national sovereignty and enhance national security.”
“Peace in our region is a priority for Rwanda yet it has been lacking, particularly in eastern DRC,” Kagame said.
Several dozen heads of state and other dignitaries from African nations joined the inauguration ceremony at a packed 45,000-seat stadium in Kigali, where many were dressed in the green, yellow and blue colours of the Rwandan national flag.
Kagame, 66, won the elections held in July with 99.18% of the votes. He has been in power in the country since March 2000 with the approval of parliament, following his major role in putting the country back on the path of development after the genocide that Rwanda witnessed in 1994, before being elected in 2003, 2010 and 2017.
In 2015, he oversaw constitutional amendments that reduced the presidential term from seven to five years, and allowed him to run for a fourth term.
Angola’s President Joao Lourenco, among those who attended yesterday’s ceremony, was due to have private talks with Kagame on a DRC ceasefire deal hammered out last month, the Angolan presidency said.
Luanda brokered the agreement after a meeting between the foreign ministers of DRC and Rwanda.
Kagame is credited with rebuilding a ruined nation after the genocide, when Hutu extremists unleashed 100 days of vicious bloodletting targeting the Tutsi minority, killing around 800,000 people, mainly Tutsis but also Hutu moderates.
With 65% of the population aged under 30, Kagame is the only leader most Rwandans have ever known.
“I proudly cast my vote for president Kagame and made it a priority to be here today to witness this historic inauguration,” said Tania Iriza, a 27-year-old trader, one of the tens of thousands who turned out for the ceremony.
“His leadership has been transformative for our nation. Under his leadership, Rwanda has risen from our tragic past and forged a path towards prosperity, unity and innovation.” Kagame has won every presidential election he has contested, each time with more than 93% of the ballot.