Dr Kaberuka was speaking Friday at the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF)-Inkotanyi Congress in Kigali.
He was in the panel with the Rwanda Mining and Petroleum Board Chief Executive Officer, Francis Gatare; the US based Lifting and Empowering All Families Pharmaceuticals CEO, Dr. Clet Niyikiza and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Community, Louise Mushikiwabo. Their discussions revolved around the topic ‘Shaping Rwanda for Global Challenges’.
Dr Kaberuka said the global circumstances, that prevailed at the time former Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA) launched the liberation struggle, marked what was called Afro-pessimism. ‘The global order was: what can we do for Africa?’
“The RPF then has major role to play in changing the narrative. We did not want to be objects of pity,” he said.
He said one thing that has shaped Rwanda after the RPF assumed leadership is the determination to deliver on what is set out to do.
“Very few countries have managed to do that and I witnessed that during my time at African Development Bank Group as president,” he said adding that the RPF has demystified the biblical tale of David versus Goliath concept on the Worldview of Africa.
Kaberuka reminded the youth to find solutions for their own problems in Africa.
“To the youth here, I want to tell you that Africa should wake up to the reality that the solution to our problems is here on the continent. We should stop looking elsewhere,” he urged youth.
Mushikiwabo said that Rwandans must not waste their energy on roadside politics. She said Africa must put her efforts together.
Niyikiza noted that to be able to navigate the unpredictable global challenges, Africans must instill into their children the culture of thinking big, innovate and have strategies in place to protect the innovations.
Rugege was, on Thursday, closing moot court competition on armed conflict crimes and children rights protection during war and conflicts period.
The four-day competition had attracted 48 students and their 24 lecturers from 24 universities in the Great Lakes Region countries.
Rugege said the competition brings out the best among students and shows their potential to be great lawyers, politicians or judges in the future.
“Moot Courts are beneficial in themselves. They strengthen knowledge and skills of participating students in particular area of law as well as sharpening their professional skills in terms of disputes handling, advocacy, persuasive arguments or in drafting courts submissions,” he said adding that they are important life skills for any future lawyer.
Rugege said the focus of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights was a very important area for the region.
“Considering that the Great Lakes Region has been ravaged by conflicts, breach of International Humanitarian Law and gross abuses of human rights have been common in the area with the most notable being the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda,” he said.
Citing South Sudan and Central African Republic as examples, Rugege said that conflicts caused much suffering to victims including children.
“It is also crucial that young people like you should learn about rights of citizens and what you can do to protect them by means of representation as lawyers, as prosecutors of those who violate international laws and human rights, as judges who decide the cases or as advocates for peace and security in your countries and the region,” he said.
He said the competition has provided vital knowledge in the area of law and contributed to peace building, providing youth as leaders of tomorrow with an opportunity to spend time and work together on these issues.
Rugege asked them to protect children saying that they are the valuable resources and future of countries.
“We should struggle for them to live in peace and prosperity instead of war, displacement, retroaction and misery,” he said.
He urged lecturers not to focus on theories while teaching international laws, rather to think of approaches that give more time for discussing real conflict situations in the region with their students.
Angela Mnao, a student from Kenya, said that they learnt a lot in the competetion especially in laws governing armed conflicts. Mnao said the lessons will help in her studies and future career.
Rwandan Élysée Rugundana emerged the winner in men category while Angela Mnao emerged the best winner as good advocate in women category.
Speaking to IGIHE on the sidelines of the Rwanda Patriotic Front (FPR)-Inkotanyi Congress in Kigali on Thursday, Kimonyo said the talks consider giving Kenyan nationality to those Rwandans or repatriated them to Rwanda.
In 1940, a number of Rwandans were taken as slaves by British colonialists to Kenya to work in tea plantation in different parts of the country. As a result, currently there are about 500 descendants from those slaves living in Kenya.
In 1945, these Rwandans were given Kenyan nationality and identity cards but their IDs were confiscated 30years later, depriving them rights to nationality. They were, then, given temporary IDs that are renewable every three months.
Over 40 years in Kenya now, they are denied equal rights with Kenyans.
Among these rights include government education scholarships, opening bank accounts among other rights that a stateless person cannot access.
They have always applied for the nationality but they are still in ambiguity.
“We are discussing so that those who wish to live in Kenya can be given nationality and those willing to come back to Rwanda will be repatriated. They have spent several years in that country as they went there before Kenyan independence,” he said.
In 1980, Kenyan government had decided to repatriate them but then Rwandan government rejected them saying that they were Kenyans.
According to Kimonyo, Rwanda has embarked on bringing back her nationals and this is why the country welcomes all those who wish to come back home.
“All Rwandans living abroad are free to go back to their country and those who wish to stay there are also free to do so,” he said.
Article 7 of Rwandan Constitution stipulates that every person has a right to nationality and dual nationality is permitted. The Constitution states that no Rwandan may be deprived of Rwandan nationality of origin.
According to the Constitution, Rwandans or their descendants who were deprived of their nationality between 1st November 1959 and 31st December 1994 by reason of acquisition of foreign nationalities automatically reacquire Rwandan nationality if they return to settle in Rwanda
According to MINISANTE, the World Health Organisation (WHO) released advisory note concerning water-pipe tobacco smoking, stating that they cause health effects and recommended actions for regulators.
The note by the WHO expressed that Shisha Tobacco smoking is damaging, addictive and dangerous on human lives.
The note says that the smoke that emerges from water-pipe contains numerous toxicants known to cause lung cancer and heart diseases among others.
“Accordingly, the Ministry of Health informs general public that the use, advertisement and import of water-pipe tobacco smoking known as Shisha Tobacco is banned on Rwandan territory effective from 15th December, 2017,” reads the ministry’s statement released on Thursday.
The statement cautions the public that failure to comply with the notice, sanctions as provided by the law will be applied.
RRA and Gasabo District carried out on Wednesday land lease tax payment campaign which was aimed at raising awareness about tax payment among city dwellers.
Dubbed ‘RRA Iwacu’, the Deputy Commissioner for Regional and Decentralized Taxes, Ernest Karasira said the campaign aimed to remind population about paying before the deadline.
“Land lease tax fee is paid annually before 31st December and there are few days remaining to reach the end of the year, that is why RRA in partnership with local authorities has launched this campaign,” he said
He said they expected to raise Rwf3 billion in Gasabo District, but they had collected Rwf598 million, below 20% of the target by Wednesday 13th December.
He said, in Nyarugenge District, out of Rwf720 million that was expected by this year, 97.6% has been paid. Rwf361 million have been collected out of Rwf2,6 billion targeted in Kicukiro District.
According to RRA, Rwf6,5 billion taxes from land lease in 2016 and over Rwf7 billion is targeted around the country this year.
Gasabo District Mayor Stephen Rwamuragwa said paying taxes on deadline is a result of poor mindset.
“We still have mindset problem where our people want to pay everything on the deadline,” he said.
Taxpayer and Kinyinya resident, Innocent Muhigira said the campaign taught him a lot about land lease tax payment.
The law says that land lease tax should be paid on commercial, industrial and residential plots. It must also be paid on arable land with the size above two hectares.
Most of the rich and wealthy people we know today have the following habits…
{{They have a budget}}
Definitely worth adopting. Having a budget allows one plan their spending properly, and avoid going beyond their spending limit. It allows you know where your money goes to, and helps control the waste of financial resources. As long as you have good discipline, it’s hard to not spend wisely with a budget.
{{They don’t do impulse buys}}
Impulse buys are major avenues for the loss of finances by people. Of course, it’s buying outside your budget for the week or month. A lot of us have this problem sadly. But it’s difficult to save money when you buy impulsively. It’s better to draw a list of the things you need for the month, and buy them, then totally forget buying. If you think you have a serious need, instead of buying a product/service to meet it immediately, go home, think about it, and decide if you truly need it after 24 hours.
{{They don’t move around with their debit/credit cards}}
People usually have their debit/credit cards with them for the purpose of paying with ease, and sometimes it’s because they want to be able to buy just anything at any time, but the truth about it is carrying one’s debit/ credit cards around would rather encourage impulse buying and excessive spending than not. Because you have your card, it’s easier to pay for even things you don’t need, but if you have a few budgeted thousands or hundreds in your pockets, its difficult to go outside your limit because there’s no means to do that.
{{They don’t live above their means}}
These guys are usually the most principled set of people. They don’t live to impress anyone, because they know at the end it doesn’t matter. Most wealthy people got there living within their income, and not above it. Now, how does one do that? Don’t create false standards for yourself, and don’t live to impress anyone. Avoiding those means no borrowing, and more savings culture.
{{Source:elcrema.com}}
Kagame was speaking Thursday at the RPF Congress in Kigali ahead of 30th Anniversary celebrations slated on Saturday.
Congratulating RPF members on the 30th Anniversary, Kagame said that it is a milestone not only of years but of efforts that changed the course of history of Rwanda as well as the character.
He said RPF emerged as a response to Rwanda’s serious problems caused by bad politics. These problems, he said, include a divided country with no direction, where citizens’ rights were abused, deprived of dignity and security.
“To change the situation, commitment and great sacrifice were required. It also took ideological clarity corresponding with actions and behavior,” he said.
He said liberation meant facing new challenges including resistance to change, to learning and a sense of entitlement from those who thought the country owed them something.
Kagame said during the struggle, some people got astray, put personal interests above the core values of the RPF and accepted to be used by external forces who never wanted RPF to move forward and be who they must be.
“Knowing their weaknesses, external forces used praises, they told them they were better than the ones they fought with, better than their fellow Rwandans and they went from being leaders to being tools of external forces,” he explained.
For Africans with no pride and no dignity, Kagame said, the promise of citizenship in a foreign country was enough.
“When their plans failed, they were satisfied with being taken to a foreign country to become security guards at a bank or at a store,” he said.
“They failed to see that when you are a tool of external forces, no one will stand by you when you are no longer useful and that is what happened when they were faced with failure,” he said.
Kagame said they cannot let these challenges deter the party from the goals they have set.
“Our citizens expect us to succeed. To deliver on development, for their children to go to school, for citizens to earn a livelihood, we cannot afford to fail our citizens,” Kagame noted.
He said they have to ask themselves what example they are setting for the youth, adding that their legacy to youth should be about how they build the country and forge the identity as Rwandans.
“As cadres of RPF-Inkotanyi, we should not be bragging about what others can learn from us. That is not who we are or the values we stand for. Let us focus on the many challenges we still face and solve them,” he urged.
“You have to think of yourself as a leader who puts those you serve first, a leader who thinks about how to work with their peers. Not leaders who put themselves first. Those are not our values,” he added.
He said anything they accomplish is meaningless if they do not have the right values guiding them.
“What we are celebrating today are the achievements of a generation. But we cannot be short sighted. We must think of what we can do today to benefit the generations to come. All the challenges we have faced, and the milestones we have reached, they should all serve as lessons that we should use to move forward,” Kagame urged RPF Cadres.
Speaking about external threats, Kagame said “the power to protect what we have achieved, who we are and what we stand for is within us.”
Back to the liberation struggle, Kagame said when the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR) commander tried to tell former Rwanda Patriotic Army not to fight because the French had superior weapons, he gave him two messages to deliver: ‘Tell them there is no greater death than accepting what is happening now. Tell them they are human beings who bleed like we do’.
Rurangirwa was speaking yesterday during the handover ceremony with outgoing Minister Jean Philbert Nsengimana.
“I will work hard to implement these programmes handed to me now. I am lucky because I am not coming to start from scratch, a lot has been constructed and I will start from there. There are laws, vision and institutions. I am coming to share ideas and collaborate with you in seeking solutions for the remaining hindrances. My share will be to achieve what is missing. I would like to promise partnership in the team along our job,” he said.
Outgoing Minister Nsengimana pledged support to his successor saying that he will continue to provide his contribution in constructing the nation.
“No one retires from the course of nation building and development. Someone gets off such an appointment, but I cannot say that I am leaving because we are still together. Wherever I will be working, in public institution or self-employed or in private company, I would assure you that we will be together,” he said.
President Kagame appointed Rurangirwa Minister of ICT on last week, replacing Nsengimana who had been in the position since 2011.
The task on Dr Mutimura was made yesterday during the handover ceremony between the incoming minister and outgoing Dr. Papias Malimba Musafiri.
The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education, Sam Mulindwa said the sector has a range of problems that need sustainable solutions to bolster the development of education in Rwanda.
“There are challenges in constructing new classrooms and renovating old ones while others need school materials,” he said adding that a total of 4,000 classrooms were needed to be constructed by this year, but only 1,000 were constructed.
He said there is currently a shortage of laboratories compared to the demand in secondary schools and some higher learning institutions.
“Teachers earn a smaller salary compared to other public servants,” he claimed.
The outgoing minister, Dr Musafiri said that despite existing problems in the sector, a lot has been done and other measures are in place to address the existing problems. He urged his successor to keep working on improving quality of education to meet Rwandans’ expectations.
“Though we have all these problems, we are proud to say that much has been done like providing education for all. However, Rwandans need something more beyond this, that is quality of education,” he said.
Dr Mutimura said that in partnership with other officials, he hopes to find solutions for the remaining problems.
“You have achieved a lot and by working closely with other ministries and different institutions, we shall make achieve more,” he said.
“I, alone, cannot achieve it and this is why I ask for your assistance. I promise my good collaboration along the journey,” he told the ministry’s staff.
Dr Mutimura was appointed education minister on last week, replacing Dr Musafiri who had been in the dockets since June 2015.
The Commissioner for Traffic and Road Safety Department, CP George Rumanzi said
that under the partnership with population, general safety and security was well
maintained.
The force shared the report on Wednesday in a periodic Police-media interaction that
aimed at strengthening partnerships for quality service delivery.
Police said that road accidents in public transport reduced by 32% compared to 2016,
attributing the improvement to road safety measures mainly the introduction of speed
governors in passenger vehicles.
According to Police, 34% of lives perished in road accidents were pedestrians, 22% were motorcycle drivers and 14% were bicycle riders.
Rumanzi said that campaigns are ongoing to sensitize pedestrians on good use of roads.
He said that they continue to sensitize automobile users to embrace road rules by
avoiding high speed and turn up regularly for mechanical inspection.
In 2017, he said mechanical inspection was conducted on 102,000 automobiles while
95,000 people got driving licenses.
{{How crimes dropped
}}
The Commissioner for Criminal Investigation Department, ACP Jean Marie Vianney
Twagirayezu said Police registered 16,088 crimes in 2017, reflecting a reduction of 5.4% compared to figures of 2016.
“This is attributed to measures that police have put in place like cooperation with
population. People are providing timely information which helps us for investigations,”
he said adding that 90% of investigated people faced justice.
Among major crimes committed this year include assault, theft, defilement, murder, rape, illicit drug-related crimes, human trafficking and cyber-crimes.
Twagirayezu cautioned Rwandans on security during festive seasons by ensuring their
own security and avoiding accidents.
“We urge Rwandans to avoid drunk-driving, drugs, reckless conducts, maintaining their security and good parenting,” he urged.
