In an exclusive interview with FRANCE 24, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said his country was not yet “out of the woods” in its fight against the Al Shabaab terror group, but claimed it had made inroads, thwarted several large-scale attacks and improved its capacity to defend itself.
The Kenyan leader said that while he was hoping Somalia would be able to defend itself by 2021 as called for by the international community, Kenya’s military was committed to staying after that date if the security situation had not improved sufficiently.
Kenyatta stressed that the fight against corruption was a top priority and called on the judiciary to come up with more convictions in corruption cases, especially the one concerning the National Youth Service.
He denied that Kenya was over-borrowing from China and hailed an agreement reached last week with China whereby the Asian giant will allow better access to its market for some Kenyan goods, calling it “a win-win scenario”.
Finally, Kenyatta firmly denied any plans to seek a third presidential term, stressing that he intended to respect the constitution and saying he wanted his legacy to be a peaceful transition of power in 2022.
