After over 20 years in office, Rwanda’s Kagame seeks fourth term

Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame said he will contest next year’s election to seek a fourth term that will extend his tenure to 25 years.

“I am happy with the confidence that the Rwandans have shown in me. I will always serve them, as much when I can. Yes, I am indeed a candidate,” the 65-year-old told the pan-African Jeune Afrique magazine in an interview published Tuesday.

Kagame became president in 2000. He was 36 when his Rwandan Patriotic Front party forced out Hutu extremists blamed for the genocide in which some 800,000 people, mainly Tutsi but also moderate Hutus, were murdered between April and July 1994.

Kagame has won international acclaim for presiding over Rwanda’s peace and economic growth since 2000. He was regarded as the country’s de facto leader since the end of the genocide.

But he has faced mounting criticism for alleged human rights abuses and suppression of political opposition and independent media that has helped him perpetuate himself in office. He rejects the accusations.

The country was ranked 131 out of 180 countries in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders.

In 2015, the country changed term limits that would have forced him to step down two years later. He is now eligible for more terms and remain in power until 2034.

Kagame won the last election in August 2017 for a seven-year term with 98.63 per cent of the vote, according to the electoral commission.

The Rwandan government in March decided to synchronise the dates for its parliamentary and presidential elections, which are due to be held in August next year.

The United States in 2015 criticised the constitutional change, saying Kagame should step down when his term ended and allow a new generation of leaders to come through.

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In the Jeune Afrique interview, Kagame said he was not bothered by criticism from Western countries.

“People are supposed to be independent and should be allowed to organise themselves as they wish,” he said.