PRESIDENT WILLIAM RUTO CONGRATULATES PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME
President William Ruto has congratulated Paul Kagame following his win in the Rwandan presidential elections.
The Head of State sent a message Wednesday wishing Kagame success as he continued to steer Rwanda along the path of peace, stability, and posterity.
“I have the honor to extend to you warm congratulations for your re-election to serve a further term as President of the Republic of Rwanda on behalf of the people and the Government of Kenya,” Ruto said.
He said that this was an opportunity to strengthen ties between the two countries.
“I look forward to continuing working with you in regional and Pan-African affairs in strengthening the bond of solidarity and fraternity between the peoples of Kenya and Rwanda,” he said.
Kagame, who was first elected president in 2000.is set for a fourth term after garnering 99.15 per cent of the votes.
The 66-year-old faced no meaningful opposition with his two opponents sharing less than 1 percent of the vote.
Kagame was battling it out against two other candidates, Frank Habineza and Philippe Mpayimana. Both had opposed him at the previous poll in 2017.
At each of the three previous elections, Kagame had been winning above 93 percent of the vote.
At least eight candidates applied to run against him, but only two of them were held on the final list validated by the electoral commission.
The voter turnout that had been registered in this election was about 9 million out of the population of Rwanda, which is 14 million, up two million from the previous election, says NEC.
Over 300 international observers and 700 locals observe the process to ensure transparency.
Analysts credit Kagame’s stupendous success to his mission, since the 1994 genocide of an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus by Hutu extremists, to get back Rwanda on the path of internal peace and stability. At 66, Kagame remains a vital force in determining the destiny of this East African nation.
Rwandans also voted for parliamentary representatives separate from the presidential election, for which a total of 598 candidates were vying for the 80 seats.
The Head of State of Tanzania, Samia Suluhu, has also sent a message, saying “She looks forward to fostering those relations between the two countries in handling issues for the East African unity and prosperity”.
