Kiir jets to Rwanda for Kagame’s inauguration

Author: Chany Ninrew | Published: August 10, 2024

President Salva Kiir waves as he boards Ethiopian Airlines plane at Juba International Airport, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024. (Credit: PPU)

President Salva Kiir travelled to Rwanda on Saturday to attend the inauguration of President Paul Kagame on Sunday upon the latter’s landslide election victory last month, his office said.

Press Secretary Lily Adhieu Martin said the president, who is also the current head of the East African Community (EAC), is expected to hold meetings with President Kagame on bilateral relations and regional peace and stability.

“The visit highlights the importance of regional collaboration in addressing common challenges and advancing collective goals for the East African community,” said the statement.

Kagame cruised to a fourth term after securing 99 percent of the votes while his opponents environmentalist Frank Habineza and journalist and author Philippe Mpayimana a combined one percent, according to the country’s National Electoral Commission.

The 66-year-old has won more than 90% of the vote in the three previous elections, and his regime is credited with rebuilding a traumatized nation after the genocide in 1994.

But he is equally criticized by rights groups as autocratic, stifling the media and political opposition with arbitrary detentions.

Kagame faces backlash for allegedly fueling decades of conflict in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo, where a UN report says Rwandan troops are fighting alongside M23 rebels in the troubled east.

Previous Post
Jondoru residents deepen plea to fix ailing bridge

Next Post
VP Igga reveals government behind Kalisto Ladu’s detention