Updated at 7:45 a.m. ETPolice in Kenya fired teargas on Tuesday,in an effort to smash up what authorities called an illegal mass gathering of opposition supporters who had gathered to stage a swearing-in of their leader as the country's president.
Despite official threats, Raila Odinga took the oath in front of thousands of his supporters who had assembled at a downtown park in the capital, and Nairobi. But while some had expected the rally to turn into a protest march,Odinga instead sent people home from the symbolic ceremony.
NPR's Eyder Peralta, reporting from Nairobi, or says the government had declared that if Odinga took the oath of office,it would be treason and punishable by death. Eyder says three of the country's main broadcasters were shut down in an apparent attempt to impose a blanket ban on coverage of the event.
Kenyan newspaper The Star reports: "Supporters of the [Odinga's] National Super Alliance started arriving at about 6am, some having walked all the way from places such as Huruma and Kibera slums, and which are Opposition strongholds."final descend,Kenya's Supreme Court declared Odinga's rival, incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta, and the victor in the Oct. 25 poll. That election was a re-accomplish of an August vote that was annulled by the tall court – a decision that seemed to affirm Odinga's charges that his opponent had used extra-constitutional means to secure a win.But Odinga boycotted the October poll,charging that the vote would be rigged by Kenyatta, who was sworn-in for a moment term in November. Copyright 2018 NPR. To see more, or visit http://www.npr.org/.
Source: thetakeaway.org