Rival political leader is ‘sworn in’

NAIROBI, Kenya — In a ceremony that Kenya’s government warned would be treason, opposition leader Raila Odinga on Tuesday was sworn in as “the people’s president” during a mock inauguration protesting President Uhuru Kenyatta’s new term after months of deadly election turmoil.

The government cut live transmission of the country’s top three TV channels as a huge crowd of tens of thousands gathered in a Nairobi park for the event. Kenyatta had “expressly threatened to shut down and revoke the licenses of any media house” that aired live broadcasts, the Kenya Editors Guild said in a statement.

The 73-year-old Odinga took an oath holding a Bible over his head, amid cheers. The opposition leader called the ceremony a step toward establishing a functioning democracy in Kenya, East Africa’s economic hub.

“We are seeing the return of an authoritarian, imperial presidency in our country and rule by fiat, and this must be resisted,” he told the Kenya Television Network. Afterward, he updated his Twitter profile to call himself “President of the Republic of Kenya.”

Hours later, the government outlawed the opposition’s National Resistance Movement, with Interior Minister Fred Matiangi declaring it an organized criminal group.

The mock ceremony came after months of political uncertainty. Kenya’s Supreme Court nullified the August election after Odinga claimed that hackers infiltrated the electoral commission’s computer system and changed results in favor of Kenyatta.