Angolan President João Lourenço has been sworn in for a second term today after narrowly winning the country’s tightest elections.
This is Lourenço’s 2nd term after the August 24 election gave his Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) party a majority win of 51.17% votes.
The inauguration has been held on the Praca da Republica square in the centre of the capital, Luanda.
Large numbers of police and military forces are patrolled on the streets ahead of the ceremony.
The move, has been described by the opposition party as a stifling dissent.
“This setup aims to intimidate citizens who want to demonstrate against the election results on the day of the inauguration of a president without legitimacy,” the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) said in a statement.
Kenya’s Senate Speaker Amason Kingi is in Angola representing President William Ruto in the inauguration of President-Elect Joao Lourenco.
Kingi has joined other heads of state including Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa at the inauguration.