Monday, September 6, 2010

Kibaki attends Kagame's swearing in ceremony

Written By:PPS, Posted: Mon, Sep 06, 2010

President Mwai Kibaki on Monday joined other African leaders who attended the swearing-in ceremony for Rwandan President Paul Kagame.

The ceremony attended by 14 African Heads of State and Government from Nigeria, Togo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Togo, Burundi, Zambia, Benin, Liberia, Gabon, Central African Republic, Malawi, Ethiopia and Burkina Faso was held at the symbolic Amohoro National Stadium and witnessed by an estimated crowd of 30,000 people.

President Kibaki who has been on a two day official visit to Rwanda also attended an African Heads of State and Government consultative forum on the Millennium Development Goals on Sunday.

President Kagame thanked the Heads of State and Government who graced the occasion and termed it as a true mark of African solidarity and enhanced spirit of good neighbouriness in the continent.

President Kagame said Africa must ignore external forces that portray arrogance and a patronizing attitude which he said cause vicious poverty and underdevelopment in the continent.

The Rwandan President said poverty and underdevelopment denies people dignity adding that Africa needed more tools to implement ideas relevant to its situation and the practice of politics that promote tolerance, inclusion and protection of Human Rights.

He said Africa does not need patronage on the direction its nations should take but instead requires establishment of machanisms that build successful societies such as protection of national interests, national cohesion and unity.

He further thanked the people of Rwanda for demonstrating unwavering trust in him and the country's institutions of governance and pledged to serve the nation with diligence so as to tackle various challenges that confront the populace.

He urged the people of Rwanda to join him in building a country that avails equal opportunities to all.

Kagame won a second term of seven years in office with a convincing majority of 93 per cent of the total votes cast.

During the colourful event President Kagame was presented with both national and traditional symbols of leadership as the ecstatic crowd cheered on.

Meanwhile President Mwai Kibaki has sent a message of condolence to Anglican Church of Kenya Archbishop Eliud Wabukala following the death of his wife Caren Nakhumicha Wabukala at Nairobi Hospital.

In a message released from state house Nairobi, President Kibaki said the passing on of Caren was not only a great loss to her family, friends and relatives but also the Anglican fraternity and the nation which she diligently served.

He said the late Caren who served the church and community in various capacities will be greatly missed by those who knew her and those she served in various roles in the church and community.

Caren passed away on Sunday evening after collapsing in her house, hours after witnessing the consecration of the second Ack bishop of Nairobi Diocese.

A memorial service for Caren will be held on September 9, 2010 at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi.

The body will then be laid to rest on Saturday in Butonge Location, Bungoma District.

Archbishop Wabukala married Caren in 1976 and they have six children - three boys and three girls.

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