South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa is being sworn in for a second term as president despite failing to win a majority in parliament for his African National Congress (ANC) in last month’s elections.
Lawmakers re-elected him last week to remain as president, following a deal to form a coalition government between the ANC, its long-time rival Democratic Alliance (DA) and other parties.
The ANC, which has ruled since the end of apartheid in 1994, lost its majority for the first time after the May 29 elections failed to produce a clear winner.
Many dignitaries, including a number of African heads of state, attend the ceremony.
The ceremony, on what the presidency says is a normal working day, will include musical and artistic performances, a 21-gun salute, military fly-bys and a march past the country’s armed forces.
The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, founded six months ago by former president Jacob Zuma, says its officials will not participate in the “farcical” inauguration.
The party, which won 15% of the vote and 58 seats in parliament, also boycotted the first session of parliament last Friday.
Mr Ramaphosa has retained the presidency even as the ANC’s vote fell by 17 percentage points and it lost 70 seats in parliament.
He did this through a power-sharing agreement with the pro-business district attorney, a historic rival and other parties.
The ANC received 40% of the vote, while the DA came second with 22%.
The coalition is a move towards the political center as the ANC’s left-wing and populist breakaway parties have rejected the invitation to join a national unity government.
Ramaphosa is expected to appoint a cabinet soon after the inauguration, which will include his new coalition partners: the DA and three other smaller parties. Together, the coalition accounts for 68% of the seats in parliament.
The president is also expected to set an agenda to save the faltering economy.
Under his rule, economic performance has continued to suffer from power outages, rising crime and unemployment.
Mr Ramaphosa first became president in 2018 when his predecessor, Mr Zuma, was forced to resign over corruption allegations – which he denied.
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