Moi calls for cash as he starts fifth presidential term

Daniel arap Moi was sworn in as president of Kenya for the fifth time yesterday, with all the pomp due to a man who for the second time in five years has thoroughly outwitted his enemies.

The cockerel symbol of Mr Moi's Kenyan African National Union party flew in the breeze as Chief Justice Zachaeus Chesoni administered the oath on Uhuru Park's reviewing stand, watched by 20,000 loyalists. Flanked on the podium by President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and President Benjamin Mkapa of Tanzania, Mr Moi stiffly acknowledged his people's salutes with his sceptre-like white rod.

He called for national unity. This would be his final term of office, he reminded Kenyans, and he wanted to leave office with the country's deep tribal divisions healed.

It was, he said, his intention to use his final administration to improve infrastructure, health care, education, governance and employment, while fighting poverty and corruption. With the International Monetary Fund holding back $205m in aid due to concern over his record on these issues, Mr Moi also had a pointed message to the international donors - "the diplomatic community needs to know that for democracy to survive it needs economic support".