Lawmakers re-elected him as president last week following a
deal between the ANC, its long-time rival Democratic Alliance (DA) and other
parties to form a coalition government.
The ANC, which has governed since the end of apartheid in
1994, lost its majority for the first time after the May 29 election produced
no outright winner.
Many dignitaries, including several African heads of states,
are attending the ceremony.
The oath of office was administered by Chief Justice Raymond
Zondo.
After Ramaphosa took the oath, a band played the national
anthem followed by a 21-gun salute and a fly-past by army helicopters, before
he made his inaugural address.
The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party formed six months ago by
former President Jacob Zuma says its officials will not participate in the
“farcical” inauguration.
The party, which won 15% of votes and obtained 58
parliamentary seats, also boycotted parliament’s first sitting last Friday.
Ramaphosa has kept the presidency even though the ANC vote
fell by 17 percentage points and it lost 70 seats in parliament.
He did this through a power-sharing arrangement with the
pro-business DA, a historic rival, and other parties.
The ANC got 40% of the vote, while the DA came second with
22%.
The coalition is a move to the political centre because the
ANC’s left-wing and populist breakaway parties rejected the invitation to join
a national unity government.
Ramaphosa is expected to appoint a cabinet in the coming
days, which is to include his new coalition partners – the DA and three other
smaller parties. Together, the coalition accounts for 68% of seats in
parliament.
The president is also expected to set out an agenda to
rescue the flailing economy.
Under his rule, the economic performance has continued to
suffer amid power cuts, rising crime and unemployment.
Ramaphosa first became president in 2018 when his
predecessor, Zuma, was forced to resign because of corruption allegations -
which he denied.
