Rwanda’s zero tolerance to corruption can be illustrated by
the recent incidence of corruption in Kanombe, Kicukiro District of Kigali,
where a primary court judge, Lillian Maombi, was apprehended after being caught
in a malevolent act of bribery.
In an exclusive interview with IGIHE.com, the spokesperson
of the Rwanda National Police, Mr Theos Badege, said the incident
should serve as an example to all individuals from the average citizens to
those occupying high positions in government institutions that corruption
should be avoided and prevented.
“Its heavy a crime, it’s a bad principle, it’s a way of
hindering the progress and development that we are undertaking and also a
blemish to the judicial system in our country,” he observes.
“In this nationwide sensitisation of anticorruption, we
wish to suppress the idea that power lies in those who are able carry out these
activities of bribery and deceit. True power lies in abiding by the law. We
should use this unfortunate occurrence as an example that there is no one above
the law, be it those who facilitate in establishing it, such as
judges. Most importantly, we should not be afraid to notify or report to
the authorities in case of any malevolent activities like these,” the Police
spokesman reiterates.
Rwanda has demonstrated outstanding dedication in fighting
against corruption. It is a principle that all citizens should continue to
embrace to sustain development and responsibility to protect and preserve the
rules that govern us.
And the battle has had rewarding results. A survey
conducted by transparency international in 2010, showed Rwanda to be the least
corrupt country in East Africa by a considerable margin. Incidents of bribery
are so low with a prevalence of 6 percent compared to neighbouring countries
such as Uganda and Burundi that range from 30 percent.
This impressive fact can perhaps be attributed to the
nationwide anti-corruption drive and divulging of cases of corruption by citizens.
Leave a Reply