The new African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson Mahmoud Youssouf has thanked President William Ruto for congratulating him on his election to the position.
Youssouf promised to work closely with Ruto during his term in office.
“I thank President William Ruto for congratulating me on my victory; he is the African champion for reforms. I am honoured to work with him to advance our continental agenda. Asanti sana Mzee,” he posted on social media.
Youssouf beat former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Madagascar’s former Foreign Affairs Minister Richard Randriamandrato in the elections.
Raila was Kenya’s candidate in an election Youssouf emerged winner after securing 33 votes in the seventh round of voting.
Raila conceded defeat and also congratulated Youssouf on his victory.
Addressing the media in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Raila wished Youssouf well during his term.
He underscored the role of fairness in the conduct of the elections, intimating that the results should serve to strengthen democracy in Africa.
“I had offered myself as a candidate, over the last few months I have run around the continent talking to different leaders of the continent canvassing for their vote and today they have expressed themselves. As it stands now, we did not succeed,” he said.
“We say that we must strengthen democracy in the African continent and I’m therefore conceding defeat, and I want us to use this as an example of strengthening democracy in our continent.”
An AUC chairperson is elected by the Assembly for a four-year term, renewable once.
The seat is held on a rotational basis among the five regions, and this time, the Eastern region was eligible to present a candidate while the Northern region presented a deputy chairperson.
With 49 heads of state partaking in the vote, the winner in Saturday’s election needed two-thirds of the total votes, totalling 33.
The election was held during the 38th Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
