New Kenya president William Ruto takes energy in handover from Uhuru Kenyatta : NPR

Kenya’s new president William Ruto, seen Tuesday behind fountain fireworks, holds up a ceremonial sword as he’s sworn in to workplace at a ceremony held at Kasarani stadium in Nairobi.

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Kenya’s new president William Ruto, seen Tuesday behind fountain fireworks, holds up a ceremonial sword as he’s sworn in to workplace at a ceremony held at Kasarani stadium in Nairobi.

Brian Inganga/AP

NAIROBI, Kenya — William Ruto was sworn in as Kenya’s president on Tuesday after narrowly profitable the Aug. 9 election in East Africa’s most secure democracy, and rapidly signaled that his management will likely be a strongly Christian one.

The Supreme Courtroom final week rejected a problem by shedding candidate and longtime opposition determine Raila Odinga of the official outcomes, finishing a markedly peaceable election in a rustic with a historical past of troubled ones.

The 55-year-old Ruto had been the deputy to outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta however had a bitter break up with Kenyatta that left the 2 not talking for months at a time. On Tuesday, the viewers cheered as the 2 shook arms, and once more as Kenyatta handed over the devices of energy.

Ruto, who had dropped to his knees in tears and prayer when the courtroom upheld his win, knelt on the stage minutes after his swearing-in throughout an prolonged sermon. “A hen vendor to a president,” intoned the pastor, highlighting Ruto’s humble youth.

Ruto’s first tweet quoted Psalms: “That is the day the Lord has made; allow us to rejoice and be glad in it.” In his speech, he praised each the church and Islamic management and vowed that “we are going to improve our partnership, construct on our collaboration and improve our help to them.”

Supporters collect within the stands, certainly one of them waving a nationwide flag, as they await the inauguration of Kenya’s new president William Ruto Tuesday at Kasarani stadium in Nairobi. A lot of folks have been crushed and injured as Kenyans compelled their method into the stadium.

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Supporters collect within the stands, certainly one of them waving a nationwide flag, as they await the inauguration of Kenya’s new president William Ruto Tuesday at Kasarani stadium in Nairobi. A lot of folks have been crushed and injured as Kenyans compelled their method into the stadium.

Brian Inganga/AP

The occasion started with some chaos. Scores of individuals have been crushed and injured as they compelled their method into the packed stadium. A medic mentioned a fence fell down after folks pushed it and about 60 have been injured, although the quantity might rise.

“We needed to deal with some with minor accidents. Most of them have been rushed to the principle hospital in Nairobi,” medic Peter Muiruri mentioned.

Folks tried to dodge baton-wielding safety forces. Some failed. “I used to be overwhelmed by the police after attempting to get inside,” mentioned a witness, Benson Kimutai.

Ruto is taking energy in a rustic closely burdened by debt that may problem his efforts to satisfy sweeping marketing campaign guarantees made to Kenya’s poor, whom he has described as getting by on “cussed hope.” In his speech, he acknowledged that “clearly, we live past our means.”

He promised cheaper fertilizer as meals costs rise and extra reasonably priced credit score. He additionally vowed extra money for the judiciary, monetary independence for the nationwide police from the presidency and efforts to combat a drought in Kenya’s north that brings the specter of famine.

Ruto additionally requested Kenyatta to proceed “chairing discussions” on the regional crises in neighboring Ethiopia, the place the federal government is combating Tigray forces, and in jap Congo, the place tensions exist with Rwanda. Kenyatta has accepted, the brand new president mentioned.

Outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta inspects his final guard of honor in the course of the swearing-in ceremony of Kenya’s new president, William Ruto, on Tuesday.

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Outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta inspects his final guard of honor in the course of the swearing-in ceremony of Kenya’s new president, William Ruto, on Tuesday.

Sayyid Abdul Azim/AP

With the transition, Kenya’s presidency strikes from one chief indicted by the Worldwide Felony Courtroom to a different. Each Kenyatta and Ruto have been indicted over their roles in lethal 2007 post-election violence, however the instances have been later closed amid allegations of witness intimidation.

The August election was calm in a rustic with a historical past of political violence. Chaos erupted solely within the closing minutes when the electoral fee publicly break up and outstanding Odinga supporters tried to bodily cease the declaration of Ruto because the winner.

Ruto’s marketing campaign portrayed him as a “hustler” with a humble background of going barefoot and promoting chickens by the roadside, a counterpoint to the political dynasties represented by Kenyatta and Odinga. His presidential flag includes a wheelbarrow, the image of his marketing campaign.

“A village boy has change into the president of Kenya,” he mentioned Tuesday.

However Ruto obtained highly effective political mentoring as a younger man from former President Daniel arap Moi, who oversaw a one-party state for years earlier than Kenyans efficiently pushed for multiparty elections.

Ruto now speaks of democracy and has vowed there will likely be no retaliation towards dissenting voices. “I’ll work with all Kenyans regardless of who they voted for,” he mentioned in his speech.

However in a warning signal for media, native broadcasters accused by Ruto of bias up to now have been restricted of their protection of the inauguration and compelled to make use of a feed from a South African broadcaster during which Kenya’s nationwide broadcaster has a share.

The shedding candidate, 77-year-old Odinga, is setting himself as much as be a outstanding opposition voice as soon as once more after being backed by former rival Kenyatta within the election. In a press release on Monday, he mentioned he would skip the inauguration and later would “announce subsequent steps as we search to deepen and strengthen our democracy.”

Although Odinga additionally asserted that “the end result of the election stays indeterminate,” a spokesperson advised The Related Press it was “extremely unlikely” he would search to declare himself the “folks’s president” as he did after shedding the 2017 election.