Kenya’s fifth president William Ruto jetted into the country and held his first church service in statehouse.
The 55-year-old is not shy of publicly professing his faith and has been vocal on issues like gay rights and abortion, which are likely to come up during his tenure.
Mr Ruto is fond of quoting the scripture, praying and even sobbing in public. During the campaign, his opponents mocked him as “deputy Jesus” – a badge his supporters quickly adopted.
His first action after the Supreme Court upheld his victory in last month’s election was to get on his knees and pray alongside his wife Rachel and other leaders who were in the room.
Mr Ruto and his wife have even built a chapel in the compound at their residence in the Karen suburb of the capital Nairobi.
A Muslim leader also prayed in the compound after the judgement, showing that despite Mr Ruto’s strong Christian belief, he plans to be the leader of people from all faiths. Kenya’s different religious communities generally co-exist in peace and the new president also enjoys the support of many Muslims.
Mr Ruto’s electoral success was largely down to the fact that he portrayed himself as a “hustler”, fighting the attempt by two political dynasties – the Odingas and Kenyattas – to hang on to power.
He promised a “bottoms-up” approach to the economy to tackle the high unemployment rate among young people, and to improve the lives of poor people.
Today’s service was one of a kind.
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