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On his sixth attempt, Wavel Ramkalawan, an Anglican clergyman, became the president of Seychelles and ended decades in opposition, but as Tim Ecott reports from the Indian Ocean archipelago, he now has to unite the country.
“After 43 years we have recovered democracy. The road has been long and now we will reap its fruits.”
In President Wavel Ramkalawan’s acceptance speech, President Wavel Ramkalawan addressed an audience of invited dignitaries gathered on the manicured grounds of State House, there was only the slightest hint of triumphalism.
His election marks a sea change for the islands, where the presidency has been dominated by one party since 1977.
In front of the large Victorian colonial mansion and accompanied by a military honor guard, the president of the Supreme Court of Justice was sworn in on Monday.
The new president is an ordained Anglican minister, and unsurprisingly his overall message was one of peace, tolerance and a call for all Seychelles to work together for national unity and overcome the divisions of so many years of political wrangling.
Thanking outgoing President Danny Faure for keeping the political dialogue open over the past years, Mr. Ramkalawan emphasized the need for tolerance among the Seychelles people and called for what he called a return to civility, to a society where everyone Say good morning and where racial and social differences are put aside.
“Seychelles”, said the new president, “should be an example of tolerance for the whole world. We are 115 small islands in the Indian Ocean, but we are not island”.
“We will maintain friendly relations with all nations and appreciate the help and assistance of our international allies, whoever they are.”
Behind the Christian sentiments expressed by the new president, there is also political steel.
‘Pulpit politician’
This was his sixth attempt at the presidency, a journey that began when he first ran for office in 1998.
He had entered politics several years earlier, and the government criticized him for making what they viewed as political statements from the pulpit during the era of one-party state.
He had come close to winning the presidency several times, and in 2015 he lost to James Michel by just 193 votes in a second round of voting.
Referring to years in the opposition, and his five previous defeats in the presidential elections, Mr. Ramkalawan quoted Nelson Mandela: “A winner is a dreamer who never gives up.”
Source: BBC
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