The statement released last night shows that new cases were found in Kigali: 24, Rubavu: 10, Bugesera: 6, Kirehe: 3, Rusizi: 2 and Rwamagana: 1.
Rwanda confirmed the first COVID-19 case on 14th March 2020.
So far 6237 people have been infected out of 650,688 sample tests of which 5715 have recovered, 471 are active cases while death toll stands at 51.
Coronavirus symptoms include coughing, flu, and difficulty in breathing. The virus is said to be transmitted through the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract.
Rwandans are urged to adhere to COVID-19 health guidelines, washing hands frequently using soaps and safe water, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing.
The incident took place last night when three of the four assailants equipped with traditional arms run away.
The Executive Secretary of Munyiginya sector, Richard Niyomwungeri has told IGIHE that the armed thieves stormed the bank around 00:40
“We have been alerted around midnight that gangs with knives attacked the Sacco. It is said that one attacked the security guard as others broke glasses of the building attempting to open. They immediately run away as the security guard shot dead the assailant,” he said.
Niyomwungeri explained that the security did the shooting for self-defense as the gang wanted to stab him.
Police spokesperson in Eastern Province, CIP Hamduni Twizeyimana has told IGIHE that the security guard first warned the gang with a shot into the air before gunning him/her down with three bullets.
“The guard explains that he had changed stance after thieves stole a computer at the bank recently. When last night thieves came, they inspected his former stance, missed him and started breaking glasses to break through. Some thieves run away as the guard fired into the air and gunned one down with three bullets,” he said.
CIP Twizeyimana appealed on residents to report suspects threatening security on time.
Mudathiru is part of 32 people accused of working with terror groups including P5 and FLN.
During the previous hearing, the prosecution requested the court to consider provided evidences pinning the suspects to give them heaviest punishments granted by laws.
The Military prosecution separately requested punishments for each charge and overall, sought life sentence for all suspects on ground of involvement in coordinated activities.
The suspects are segmented into two groups mainly the group comprising of 25 led by Rtd Major Mudathiru Habib (a former RDF soldier) facing charges including formation and being part of an irregular armed group or joining it, conspiracy against the established Government or the President of the Republic, maintaining relations with a foreign government with the intent to wage a war and formation of or joining a criminal group.
They were captured last year in terrorism activities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), as part of an intensified campaign by the Congolese military against militia groups operating in the country. The 25 suspects were extradited to on 18th June 2019. Another suspect connected to the case is Pte a Jean Bosco Ruhinda who escaped to DRC forests. He is tried in absentia because he has not yet been captured.
Another group connected to the case includes Corporal Viateurv, Corporal Jean Bosco Dusabimana and Private Champagnat Igitego led by Pte Dieudonné Muhire.
They are accused along with two civilians Pacifique Muhire and Richard Nzafashwanimana.
The group is accused of escaping the military, conspiracy against the Government or intending to overthrowing it by means of war or other powers, formation of a criminal group and subsequently seducing new recruits, and taking part of terror group’s activities.
The 31 co-accused were yesterday present in court except Private Ruhinda tried in absentia.
As they appeared at Military High Court for the final hearing of the case that opened last year, Mudathiru told the court he was part of soldiers raiding Rwanda on 1st October 1990 during the liberation war. Mudathiru was at the rank of Sergeant got from Uganda’s military he had joined in 1981.
Mudathiru later held different positions including appointment as a military instructor until 2005 when he was promoted to the rank of major.
In 2009, Mudathiru was arrested for issuing unguaranteed cheque but later won the case.
He returned to work, reintegrated in National Police and retired in 2013 when Mudathiru requested authorization to join his family in Uganda. That’s when RNC lured him until he joined and arrested.
{{Admitting three of five charges }}
Mudathiru admitted three charges namely’ joining illegal armed group, bad intentions against the Government and maintaining relations with a foreign government with the intent to wage a war.
He however denied charges pinning him to the foundation of the armed group and terror activities.
“I admit the three charges only and apologize for that,” said Mudathiru.
He admitted to have facilitated trainings but denied involvement in recruitment processes.
Mudathiru expressed gratefulness to Rwanda for the support he received since arrest including treatment for wounds inflicted in DRC forests, diabetes and blood pressure.
Among others, he thanked the court for granting them freedom of expression during different hearings, apologized to the President of the Republic and all Rwandans.
Considering humane treatment in Rwanda despite his accusations, Mudathiru expressed remorse for his acts.
“I admit what happened and apologize to the country. Rwanda is our parent. Honorable judge, have mercy on me as you make rulings. I am apologizing from the bottom of my heart,” he said.
Mudathiru requested lessened penalties committing to respect the laws after pardon and return to normal life.
Ildephonse Rusigariye also sought forgiveness expressing commitment to be a good and exemplary citizen in the community. He explained that he was seduced for a job but ended up finding himself in a terror group.
Jean de Dieu Ndirahira, a Burundian held for involvement in activities intended to destabilize Rwanda’s security appreciated kind treatment in Rwanda and requested the court to consider his innocence citing that he was abducted in Burundi’s market by Kinyarwanda speaking people.
A Ugandan, Desideriyo Fred who is among arrested terror suspects said he willingly reported himself to DRC security before they were handed to Rwanda.
The Defense Lawyer of the suspects, Rwagasore requested the court to acquit his clients proposing an alternative of keeping them in a camp as they await reintegration to normal life.
The Presiding Judge, Lt Col Bernard Rugamba Hategekimana declared end of the hearing and announced ruling schedule on 15th January 2021.
Judge Lt Col Rugamba has been attending to the case along with two colleagues namely; Major Charles Sumanyi and Maj Narcisse Cyubahiro Nsengiyumva.
Staff Sergeant Sylvain Mutabaruka was the secretary while prosecutors include Major Dennis and Captain Rugamba Jacques.
The bank got the recognition during the 5th Service Excellence Awards 2020 that took place on December 4, at Park Inn by Radisson Kigali.
The excellence awards were organized by East African Youth Development Agency and Kalisimbi Events.
During the ceremony, Access Bank Rwanda emerged among other institutions awarded in various categories.
Olivier Gakuba, the Bank’s Head of Strategic Business Units said the award reflects the bank’s trust among customers.
“Being awarded best bank of the year reflects customers’ trust to the bank and gives us courage to constantly improve service delivery,” he said.
Gakuba attributed to the award to skilled and dedicated employees taking care of all customers.
The award comes few days after the bank introduced “Ikaze Agency Banking” to decentralize its services.
As the agency banking was launched, Gakuba explained that it will help the bank to meet customers’ demands with improved services without necessity for physical presence at the bank’s branches or ATM machines.
It will not only improve services but also provides job opportunities to many Rwandans.
Access Bank is also committed to leverage technology to facilitate customers’ transactions as they withdraw, deposit and transfer money.
Founded by deeply experienced dispute resolution pioneers in the U.S. and abroad, the Weinstein International Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to making mediation available and accessible worldwide in the face of increasing global challenges and conflict.
Headquartered in San Francisco, the Weinstein International Foundation works through a global network of Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) trained dispute resolution professionals from around the world with the cultural understanding and local knowledge necessary to promote the resolution of conflict through mediation and other dispute resolution practices in their own countries and beyond.
In a statement released yesterday, the foundation expressed optimism that Prof Rugege’s experience will be leveraged to reach its goals in Africa.
“We are thrilled that Sam Rugege has joined our board. The honorable former chief Justice Sam Rugege is respected worldwide in the field of mediation, conflict resolution and reconciliation and will help lead our Foundation’s efforts to bring mediation to many regions in Africa with the same dedication and persistence he has demonstrated in Rwanda,” said Judge Danny Weinstein, the Founder of Weinstein International Foundation.
Professor Sam Rugege expressed delight for the honor and assured to play his role especially in Africa where conflict continues to hamper development.
“I am greatly honored and humbled to be a member of the Weinstein International Foundation, joining a highly distinguished group of ADR pioneers. The Foundation is a champion of peaceful resolution of conflicts and other disputes, leading the effort of promoting greater access to justice through mediation and supporting education and training in mediation around the world. Rwanda has benefitted from its programs and I look forward to playing my part in this noble mission, especially in Africa where conflict continues to cause avoidable suffering and hamper development,” he said.
The statement further reads that Rugege is recognized for the achievements of Justice e in expanding the use of mediation in Rwanda.
“The Foundation looks forward to continuing to make mediation more accessible and available in Rwanda through the ongoing contributions of Justice Rugege and Senior Fellows, Harrison Mutabazi, Anastase Nabahire and Bernadette Uwicyeza,” reads part of the statement.
This expansion has been a critical component of the country’s drive to consolidate peace, stability and amicable resolution of disputes, as well as establish itself as a key economic hub in Africa in the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
As Chief Justice in Rwanda, Rugege was responsible for developing judicial policy and oversaw judicial reforms encompassing the use of court technologies, continuing legal education and specialization training for judges. During his tenure, access to justice was enhanced through constitutional challenges, public interest litigation and the promotion of court-annexed mediation. Now a certified and registered mediator, Rugege was recently appointed to serve as chairperson of the newly created Court Mediation Advisory Committee.
Justice Rugege’s leadership in the Rwandan judiciary helped expand use of mediation in the country through the implementation of a court-annexed mediation project. Today, the Rwandan Judiciary remains committed to enhancing ADR and mediation and regularly refers cases to court-accredited mediators for mediation, as well as promoting mediation as a dispute resolution tool through public awareness campaigns.
In Rwanda, the Ministry of Justice has initiated a national ADR policy project, with the goal of developing an informed ADR comprehensive plan and a coordinated approach to its implementation at both the local and national levels. As part of this plan, a national mediation policy is now pending approval by the government. If passed, this policy will make mediation mandatory at the pre-filing stage of civil disputes and substantially raise the awareness and use of mediation.
Rugege was educated at Makerere University, Yale Law School and the University of Oxford, where he obtained an LLB, LLM and D. Phil, respectively. He began his career as a lecturer in law at Makerere University, before being forced to flee the terror of the Idi Amin regime in 1976. Rugege then taught at the Universities of Lesotho and Swaziland. Before being elevated to the bench, he was a professor of law at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in South Africa, where he taught constitutional law and post-Apartheid land reform.
Rugege was elected an Honorary Fellow of St. Peter’s College, Oxford “in recognition of outstanding achievements in the field of law.” He has also been honored by the East African Law Society “in recognition of distinguished service to the legal profession,” by the Rwanda Bar Association for “outstanding contribution to the development of the legal profession and the justice sector in Rwanda” and by the Kigali Arbitration Centre for “extraordinary contribution and dedication to the promotion of ADR in Rwanda.”
The figures were revealed yesterday in shareholder’s general meeting which indicated net capital growth by 22% bringing it to Rwf4.4 billion.
The increase in profits was largely attributed to different loans especially injected into women’s projects.
Loans offered last year increased by 18% reaching Rwf 15 billion.
The chairperson of COPEDU Plc Board Committee, Gashumba Liliane expressed delight over the growth evidencing the company’s unrelenting commitment to support women-led businesses.
She stressed that the bank eyes to take the lead in promoting women in Africa.
“We have strong ambitions to make COPEDU Plc, a leading and strong bank promoting women in Africa to the extent that others will learn from our experience,” said Gashumba.
Mukarugambwa Ntwali Anne Marie hailed the contribution of COPEDU Plc to the development of women in Rwanda.
“COPEDU Plc has enabled women’s progress. They have been able to realize their ambitions, contributed to the growth of their families and the country. This is what makes the progress of COPEDU Plc possible,” she noted.
Created in 1997, COPEDU PLC has gradually grown and introduced new payments or withdraws methods using Debit Card and depositing or withdrawing using ‘Push and Pull’ System. The institutions works with Business Development Fund (BDF) to provide loans to targeted customers.
{President Paul Kagame has emphasized the need to embrace the use of technology in daily lives which is increasingly becoming a prerequisite upon which the good jobs of the future will rely on.}
Kagame was yesterday speaking at the 9th Smart Africa Board Meeting during which he joined other Heads of State and Government, their representatives and other delegates.
President Kagame said that seven more countries have joined Smart Africa since the last Board Meeting, in May 2019. This brought membership to 31 countries. The new members are; Algeria, Cap Verde, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mauritania, Morocco, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe. The organization also got new membership from the private sector, including Tahaluf Al Emarat, BICS, and Softbank.
To this end, President Kagame emphasized the importance of the partnership with the private sector for smart Africa and stressed the need for increased investments in technology which is at the helm of future progress.
“We place a high value on what you as business leaders bring to these efforts. We will continue working together with you very closely, to make the necessary investments and also ensure a common standing of how to proceed. This is especially evident in the process of recovering from Covid. The pandemic has shown that connectivity is not a luxury, it is a necessity,” he said.
“Increasingly, the provision of education and health services depends on digital infrastructure. The good jobs of the future will also rely on technology skills, and a digital identity. The mission of Smart Africa really seats the center of everything we are trying to do, as a continent and with our partners around the world,” added Kagame.
The meeting also assessed ways of reducing internet cost by 2025, the master plan for developed rural areas, seeking how to start Smart Africa embassies and establishment of Smart Africa Academy among others.
Smart Africa is a bold and innovative commitment from African Heads of State and Government to accelerate sustainable socio- economic development on the continent, ushering Africa into a knowledge economy through affordable access to Broadband and usage of Information and Communications Technologies.
Other Partners of the Smart Africa Alliance include the African Union, the ITU, World Bank, the African Development Bank, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSMA) and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
Figures from the World Health organization (WHO) show that Prostate Cancer takes lives of 921 out of 1304 women developing the disease every year in Rwanda.
According to Dr Osvaldo Rodriguez, a Gynecologist at Baho International Hospital who has been at the facility for six years, women rarely go for cancer checkups yet some live with it unknowingly at early stage.
He says, Baho International Hospital applies modern cancer diagnosing using scanning cameras ideally spotting the affected part of the body.
Dr Rodriguez explains that available equipment are particularly used to screen cervical cancer and breast cancer and uses other reliable methods to diagnose other sorts of cancer.
He also highlights major causes of breast and prostate cancer and advises on preventive measures.
“Engaging in sexual relations before the age of 22, doing sex with more than one man or having a husband engaging in sexual relations with other women, poor hygiene and weak immune system are among other causes of cervical cancer,” says Rodriguez.
Contrary to the cervical cancer, Rodriguez reveals that breast cancer is hereditary.
“You have cancer risks if there is a relative who caught or succumbed to cancer. This happens especially in the ages of 40,” he says.
Breast cancer is an uncontrolled growth of breast cells. Cancer occurs as a result of mutations, or abnormal changes, in the genes responsible for regulating the growth of cells and keeping them healthy. It attacks both sexes even though men have lower risks of developing breast cancer.
Dr Rodriguez advises women to pay special attention to all body changes that could be a way towards early detection and prevention.
As for prostate cancer, he says, people should rush for checkups to find out if no cancer is developing in their reproductive organs.
“A woman having engaged in sexual relations for the first time should go for prostate cancer screening not later than six months. Moreover, everyone is required to do cancer checkup at least every year to be treated early,” he advises.
“It is unfortunate that few people come for cancer screening yet we have all it takes to help them. The cancer is treated when detected early. They should develop the habit for regular checkups because prevention is better than cure,” added Rodriguez.
The gathering was contrary to the national directives meant to prevent further spread of the COVID-19.
The violators were found gathered in the house of one Jean Pierre Musilikali located in Rwentanga Cell, praying.
Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Hamdun Twizeyimana, the Police spokesperson for the Eastern Region, said the gathering, which contravened the government safety guidelines against the pandemic, was reported by area residents.
“This was a small residential house with 46 people congested in it. They came from different places with none of them wearing a face mask and it was about midnight,” said CIP Twizeyimana.
Residents called their community night patrol-Irondo-who in turned called the Police, he added.
“These are believers from different religious denominations; 43 of them came from the cells of Kanyonza and Rwentanga in Matimba Sector while three others were from Musheri Sector. Worse still, majority of them were aged below 21; only 13 people were above 21 years. Overall, 33 were women,” said the spokesperson.
In daily updates on COVID-19 by the Ministry of Health, on December 6, two people from Nyagatare were among the 45 identified positive cases.
The previous day on December 5, one person was also found infected in Nyagatare while another positive case in the district was reported on December 2.
Meanwhile, the host of the prohibited gathering, Musilikali, escaped arrest when the other violators were handed administrative fines after being enlightened on the threat of COVID-19 as well as adherence to safety and health guidelines.
CIP Twizeyimana warned against violating the directives, which can derail the national efforts against the pandemic.
The statement released last night shows that new cases have been found in Kigali : 50, Musanze:7, Rubavu : 3 , Ngororero:1 and Rusizi:1.
Rwanda confirmed the first COVID-19 patient on 14th March 2020. So far, 6191 cases have been found out of 646,813 sample tests of whom 5696 have recovered, 444 are active cases while 51 have succumbed to the virus.
Coronavirus symptoms include coughing, flu, and difficulty in breathing. The virus is said to be transmitted through the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract.
Rwandans are urged to adhere to COVID-19 health guidelines, washing hands frequently using soaps and safe water, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing.
