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10 Things To Know About Kenya President-elect, Ruto

Published

3 years ago

August 15, 2022

The head of Kenya’s election body on Monday declared William Ruto the winner of the country’s close-fought presidential election, despite several commissioners rejecting the results.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission chairman Wafula Chebukati said Ruto had won almost 7.18 million votes (50.49 per cent) against 6.94 million (48.85 per cent) for his rival Raila Odinga in the August 9 vote.

Here are 10 things to know about Ruto:

1. Born December 21, 1966, in Sambut village, Kamagut, Uasin Gishu County in the country, Ruto had all his primary, secondary and tertiary education in Kenya. He bagged a Bachelor of Science in Botany and Zoology from the University of Nairobi, graduating in 1990. Ruto proceeded to obtain a Masters degree in Plant ecology, and graduated in 2011, topping it with a Doctorate degree from the University of Nairobi, and graduating on his birthday, December 21, 2018.

2. Ruto worked as a teacher in the North Rift region of Kenya from 1990 to 1992, where he was also the leader of the local African Inland Church Choir.

3. He began his political career as the treasurer of the YK’92 campaign group that lobbied for the re-election of President Daniel Moi in 1992. He was believed to have learnt about Kenyan politics from there and also accumulated some wealth.

4. Ruto became a Member of Parliament in 1998.

5. He was made Minister of Home Affairs in 2002 in the country and served for five months.

6. In January 2006, Ruto announced his intention to vie for the presidency in the 2007 Kenyan general election. This was said to have been met with condemnation from some of his colleagues including former President Moi. However, in the formation of the Cabinet in 2008 after the election was won, amid heated political crises, by Mwai Kibaki, Ruto was appointed the Minister for Agriculture.

7. Ruto was was among the people indicted to stand trial at the International Criminal Court for their involvement in Kenya’s 2007/2008 political violence.

8. Ruto also became the Eldoret North’s Member of Parliament from 2008 to March 4, 2013.

9. In the 2013 presidential election, Ruto was elected the Deputy President alongside President Uhuru Kenyatta and served till 2022. He served as the acting President of Kenya between October 5 and 8, 2014 while President Kenyatta was away at the Hague.

10. The 55-year-old is married to Rachel Chebet and they both have seven children.

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Headline

12 Die, 30 Missing In Peru Landslide

Published

17 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

At least 12 people, including three children, died in a landslide at a river port in central Peru on Monday, and 30 were reported missing, officials said.

The landslide submerged a boat with about 50 passengers on board, and another with none, as they were docked at the port of Iparia in the Amazon jungle region of Ucayali, according to a police report cited by the Andina news agency.

Six people were injured, it added, and a search and rescue operation was underway at the start of the Peruvian rainy season.

Without giving a toll, Peru’s COEN national emergency operations centre said on X that tragedy struck at dawn due to “erosion” of the bank of the Ucayali river.

It said the navy has been called in to help.

AFP

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Nigeria Grants Asylum To Guinea-Bissau Opposition Candidate

Published

18 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian embassy in Guinea-Bissau has granted asylum to Fernando Dias da Costa, the country’s opposition presidential candidate, following alleged threats to his life after last week’s military coup, The Cable Reports.

The coup was announced by military officers on Wednesday, just days after Guinea-Bissau’s presidential election in which both incumbent President Umaro Embaló and his main challenger, da Costa, claimed victory before official results were released.

Nigeria condemned the takeover and urged an immediate return to constitutional order.

In a letter to the President of the Economic Community of West African States Commission, Omar Touray, dated November 30, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said President Bola Tinubu had approved asylum and protection for da Costa inside the Nigerian embassy in Bissau.

Tuggar wrote that the decision was made “in response to threats made against da Costa’s life.”

“In this regard, it would be appreciated if you would kindly mandate the ECOWAS Stabilisation Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau to provide him protection and security while in the premises of the Nigerian embassy,” the letter stated.

The foreign affairs minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, confirmed the letter’s authenticity to The Cable on Monday.

He said, “The decision of the Federal Government of Nigeria to grant asylum and provide protection to Fernando Dia Da Costa falls squarely within Nigeria’s sovereign responsibility and longstanding commitment to regional peace, stability, and democratic governance.”

He added that Nigeria acted “in the broader interest of de-escalation,” saying the government had exercised its discretion “to prevent further deterioration of tensions and to promote social cohesion in Guinea-Bissau and the wider West African sub-region.”

According to Abdulkadir, the intervention aligns with ECOWAS principles and reflects Nigeria’s role as a stabilising force in West Africa.

Following the coup, ECOWAS held an emergency virtual summit of heads of state and subsequently suspended Guinea-Bissau from the regional bloc until constitutional order is restored.

Headline

Trump To Attend FIFA World Cup Finals Draw On Friday

Published

18 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The White House on Monday confirmed US President Donald Trump would attend the draw for the FIFA World Cup finals in Washington later this week.

The United States will co-host the 2026 tournament alongside Canada and Mexico.

“On Friday, President Trump will attend the FIFA World Cup final draw at the Kennedy Centre,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

Trump has made the World Cup a centrepiece event of both his second presidency and the 250th anniversary of US independence next year.

But the giant sporting extravaganza has not escaped the political turmoil caused by Trump’s hardline stance on a host of issues.

Trump, a Republican, has raised the possibility of moving games from some US host cities amid a crackdown on what he says is crime and illegal migration in some Democratic-run areas.

AFP