MOI FOR BASHIR'S SWEARING CEREMONY

Former President Moi is expected to attend Sudan President Omar al Bashir swearing in for another five-year term in office Thursday.

A statement from the Sudan Embassy in Nairobi said President al Bashir is to take office before the National Legislature, which comprises the National Assembly and the Council of the States in Khartoum.

"Heads of State of neighbouring countries and prominent international guests will attend the event,” the statement said.

After the oath-taking, President al Bashir will give an address highlighting the policies of the new government.

“The executive committee in charge of preparing for the event held a meeting last week under chairmanship of the State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ali Karti, and put the final touches for the event,” the embassy said.

Sudan National Assembly is composed of 450 MPs, while the Council of State is composed of 52 members, two of them representing Abyei area.

The new government faces crucial issues including the referendum, solving Darfur crisis and the impacts of the international economic crisis.

Guarantee peace

Similarly, the new government has to unite Sudanese and guarantee peace and stability including between the north and the south.

Following his election in the presidential elections in April, President al-Bashir pledged to form a broad-based government.

Former Kenya nominated MP Mark Too is expected to attend Mr Bashir’s swearing in.

Last week, Salva Kiir was inaugurated as first southern Sudan President after the April elections.

Born in 1944, Mr Bashir who is also the head of National Congress Party came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi.

In October 2004, al-Bashir's government negotiated an end to the Second Sudanese Civil War, one of the longest-running and deadliest wars of the 20th century, by granting limited autonomy to Southern Sudan. Since then, however, there has been a violent conflict in Darfur that has resulted in death tolls between 200,000 and 400,000.

In July 2008, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno Ocampo, accused al-Bashir of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.

The court issued an arrest warrant for al-Bashir on 4 March 2009 on counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, but ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him for genocide.