Rwanda’s all-powerful President Paul Kagame was sworn in Sunday for a fourth term, saying regional peace was a “priority” in the face of ongoing conflict in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.
Kagame swept to victory in elections last month with a staggering 99.18 percent of the vote, giving him another five years in office.
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.
The outcome of the July 15 poll was never in doubt for the iron-fisted Kagame, who has ruled the small African nation since the 1994 genocide, as de facto leader and then president.
Rights activists said the 66-year-old’s overwhelming victory was a stark reminder of the oppressive regime in Rwanda, with only two candidates authorised to run against him and several prominent critics barred.
Kigali is also accused of stoking instability in the mineral-rich east of the DRC, its much larger neighbour, by backing M23 rebels fighting Kinshasa’s armed forces.
