Joseph Sibomana, 25, was arrested on Sunday, October 18, in Isangano village of Rukoko cell in Rubavu sector.
He hails from the nearby Kanama Sector in Musabike cell, Nyakibande village.
Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Bonaventure Twizere Karekezi, the Police spokesperson of the Western region, said that Sibomana was at the time found in the plantations where he had allegedly set a trap to ambush people.
“There was information of a man with a gun, who ambushes people and steals their valuables. On Sunday, at about 11 am, following information from herdsmen that the same person was hiding in a field near the border with DR Congo, where he had set a trap; security personnel were immediately dispatched apprehend the suspect, and they successfully arrested Sibomana,” CIP Karekezi said.
At the time, he added, Sibomana was wearing a military attire and holding a fake gun.
“So far, five people have come forward claiming to have been robbed by Sibomana at gun point, which gun turned out to be a fake one made out of wood. Residents thought that they were being robbed by security organs.”
“His main targets were smugglers. He would take money from them and at times take their goods in instances where smugglers ran away thinking they were fleeing from security personnel. However, all the five victims so identified are local residents, who were running their errands when Sibomana ambushed them in wee hours,” the spokesperson explained.
There is information that Sibomana works with other people and security are still searching for them.
Article 170 in the new penal code states that “any person, who carries out theft with a weapon, commits armed robbery.”
If convicted for armed robbery committed by more than one person or a group, the penalty is an imprisonment for a term of not less than fifteen (15) years and not more than twenty (20) years and a fine of not less than Frw 5 million and not more than Frw 7 million.
Among the new cases are two from Kigali and one from Nyagatare
Since the first Coronavirus patient appeared in Rwanda, 534 409 sample tests have been made of which 4965 cases were confirmed. Of these, 4974 have already recovered while 157 are still active cases. 34 people 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 required to continue to comply with government regulations, especially with frequent washing of hands and water and soap, wearing masks when leaving home or in public.
The Nyarugenge Intermediate Court on Friday 16, slapped the former Minister of State in-charge of Primary and Secondary Education, Dr. Munyakazi who resigned in February and has since been involved in a corruption related case after he was arrested for allegedly asking for an Rwf 500, 000 bribe.
The alleged bribe is said to have been from Abdou Gahima, the proprietor of Good Harvest Primary School so as to alter National School Examination results to rank the school among top 10 performers in the 2019, despite the school’s poor performance.
While appearing in the same court in September, Munyakazi and Gahima said there is no evidence to prove that this alleged act happened.
However, prosecution brought out new details and evidence showing how the bribery deal was plotted, where the involved parties met at different hotel spots in Kigali before exchanging brown envelops and shaking hands.
According to the new evidences presented, Munyakazi was believed to be the middle man who handed over the cash to one Alphonse Sebaganwa- Head of the Department of Examination, Selection and Assessment at Rwanda Education Board (REB) to manipulate the actual school positions placing Good Harvest Primary School among the top performers.
During the September trial Munyakazi denied the allegations in the prosecution evidence and instead asked that the accomplice (Alphonse Sebaganwa) who informed authorities of the alleged bribery should also stand the same trial.
Based on this new evidence, the court overruled possibilities of having the whistleblower in court.
The Court found Dr. Munyakazi guilty based on evidence indicating his abuse of power and handed him ten years behind bars, and a Rwf10million court fine; his co-accused, Abdu Gahima got five years in jail and a court fine of Rwf1.5million, which is less or more the same as the earlier proposal by prosecution to hand him five years, and a fine of Rwf2million.
Munyakazi and his accomplice have five working days to consult with lawyers to appeal the sentence, which can be reversed, reduced, upheld, increased or cleared by another court based on the available evidence.
The ministry said the victim was a 39 years old man.
Among the new cases are three from Kigali and nine were registered in Karongi from new cases in a refugee camp.
Since the first Coronavirus patient appeared in Rwanda, 530,304 sample tests have been made of which 4965 cases were confirmed. Of these, 4,664 have already recovered while 267 were still active cases.
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 required to continue to comply with government regulations, especially with frequent washing of hands and water and soap, wearing masks when leaving home or in public.
Launched in Rwanda in April 2020, ayoba is an easy to use instant messaging platform that includes informative channels as well as gaming available to all networks in Rwanda. The unique proposition for MTN customers is to be able to communicate at no data cost with all their contacts.
Commenting on the launch of the promo, MTN’s Marketing Operations Senior Manager, Desire Ruhinguka said, “Our mission is to lead digital for a brighter Rwanda. As part of our Digital Celebration named Twizamukire, we are rewarding MTN customers for joining us on this digital journey by simply using ayoba for communication and entertainment.”
Ayoba users will win cash prizes of up to Rwf50,000 weekly and airtime. New users simply have to download ayoba via Google Play Store or www.ayoba.me. Upon successfully downloading the app, the customer is required to register and use the ayoba existing features such as messaging and subscribing to channels.
Olivier Prentout, ayoba’s Head of Consumer Marketing said: “We are delighted once again to partner with MTN in Rwanda and we believe this promotion will provide new users on a great chance to join the ayoba family and enjoy the benefit of not using your data to play, share, listen and chat”
Ayoba is more than just a messaging app as it offers free games and music as well as lots of channels of information on sports, fashion, current news to name a few. MTN customers can stay connected to one another regardless of their network, access updated local content from channels like Igihe, listen to music and play games all at no data cost.
Other senators appointed are Kanziza Epiphanie and Twahirwa Andre.
These senators replaced Prof. Karangwa Chrysologue, Kalimba Zephyrin, Uwimana Consolée and Nyagahura Marguerite who had been appointed by the President of the Republic and ended their term.
Of the thirteen new cases, one is from Kigali City, six from Kirehe, five from Karongi from the clusters of new cases in refugee camps and one from Nyagatare.
Since the first COVID-19 patient was infected with the Coronavirus virus in Rwanda, 4953 people have been infected; the number of recoveries is 4601 while the number of active cases is 319 and 33 people 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 required to continue to comply with government regulations, especially with frequent washing of hands and water and soap, wearing masks when leaving home or in public.
The conference which has kicked off today October 16, 2020 in a virtual space has been organized by the AgriProFocus Forum, which brings together farmers, investors, government officials, members of the Civil Society, among others.
The theme of the conference is “Agriculture as key to a sustainable food system and business opportunities to the youth.”
The conference will bring together 100 people, including 50 youth and other stakeholders representing agricultural development and entrepreneurship organizations from among Rwanda’s youth and at least 500 people are expected to be connected in different parts of the world.
The four-day Youth and Agroecology National Summit 2020 is an opportunity to bring together young people working in agriculture, share experiences and connect youth and various stakeholders.
Participants will also visit various farms in the Southern and Eastern Provinces, looking at the state of agriculture.
Agriculture is a pillar of the carrier that supports the economies of different countries, often unique to those that practice it.
Although the sector is one of the major economies in the country Rwanda, it is one of the most affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Among the challenges in agriculture is the lack of a solid line to keep young people motivated to adhere to this sector.
In Africa, agriculture accounts for 32% of the country’s gross domestic product while it accounts for about 70%. A portion of 60% is exclusive to cultivated land in the world.
While the continent has an opportunity to grow agriculture, there is still needs to make improvements especially by helping young people to become more involved in agriculture and the use of technology.
In order to solve these problems, a conference will be held in Rwanda on how to improve agriculture.
The conference was organized by the AgriProFocus Forum, which brings together farmers, investors, government officials, members of the Civil Society and others.
The theme of this conference is” Agriculture as key to a sustainable food system and business opportunities to the youth.”
It is expected to start in Kigali on October 16, 2020 online while it will continue in other parts of the country.
The conference will bring together 100 people, including 50 youth and other stakeholders representing agricultural development and entrepreneurship organizations in Rwanda’s youth.
Due to the fact that it will be online, at least 500 people are expected to be connected in different parts of the world.
AgriProFocus members value the role of youth in food processing and sustainable agricultural investment.
AgriProFocus use modern agriculture as a way to support investment aimed at food security.
The conference, however, points out that the role of young people in this sector is still very low and still needs to be boosted up in the future.
AgriProFocus finds that improving the way agriculture is done is an opportunity for young people and can also provide them with a variety of jobs.
The four-day Youth and Agroecology National Summit 2020 is an opportunity to bring together young people working in agriculture, share experiences and connect youth and various stakeholders.
Participants will also visit various farms in the Southern and Eastern Provinces, looking at the state of agriculture.
To help young people with the goal of joining agriculture, AgriProFocus in collaboration with the IKEA Foundation is implementing a three-year 2020-2022 program called “Youth in Agroecology and Business Learning Track Africa (YALTA)” to support young people investing in agriculture to do it professionally.
There are more than 12,000 youth farmers are registered RYAF in Rwanda with more than 1,300 commercial establishments. They are integrated into sectors including agricultural processing, animal husbandry, productivity processing, agricultural assistance services and agricultural technology. It is integrated in the fields of agricultural processing, animal husbandry, crop processing, agricultural and agricultural technology services.
The National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) estimates that more than 70% of Rwandans are subsistence farmers, accounting for at least 30% of the country’s economy, followed by a specific service sector of 46%.
Since 2010, the government has set a target of creating 200,000 jobs annually based on agriculture. In the fourth census of households conducted in 2015, the number of jobs created each year reached 146,000.
This comes following the Cabinet resolution of 12th October 2020 that Public transport buses with only seated passengers are allowed to operate at full capacity (100%).
Buses in the City of Kigali will operate at 100 % of the capacity for seated passengers and 50% of the capacity for standing passengers.
In an announcement, RURA stated that Inter-city transport fares have been reduced from 30.8 – 25.9 Frw/km per passenger, while transport in the City of Kigali have reduced from 31.9 -28.9 Frw/km per passenger.
“Passengers are encouraged to pay using the available digital payment options; Public transport buses should always operate with windows open for good ventilation, except when it is raining;”
“Passengers are required to continue observing measures and guidelines to contain the spread of the COVID- 19 pandemic, especially hand washing with clean water and soap or use hand sanitizer before getting on or off the bus;
Passengers are required to always wear face masks properly, avoid hugs and/or shaking hands and must comply with other measures and guidelines as issued by the Ministry of Health from time to time;” reads part of the announcement.
Public transport service providers were also reminded to monitor and ensure that passengers observe measures and guidelines to contain the spread of COVID- 19 pandemic; adding to that failure to comply with COVID 19 preventive measures and guidelines will attract administrative sanctions and penalties.
The statement says that the country also recorded 32 new cases emerging out of 1,753 tests, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 4,940, of which 509 are still active cases.
The new cases emerged from Kirehe district where a cluster of new cases was detected in a refugee camp that had the highest number of cases with 26, Gatsibo:3, Rubavu:2 and Gicumbi:1.
The outbreak is said to be in Mahama refugee camp which hosts over 50, 000 Burundian refugees.
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 required to continue to comply with government regulations, especially with frequent washing of hands and water and soap, wearing masks when leaving home or in public.
