Rugirangoga was speaking Sunday in a yearly ‘Healing Mass’ at Amahoro National Stadium.
The mass also aimed at commemorating the victims of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi.
He urged people who committed the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi to seek for pardon and also urged survivors to forgive. He said that a country without forgiveness becomes ashes.
He said that for a person to live peacefully they should forgive and the sinner should seek for forgiveness.
“When we don’t ask for forgiveness or forgive from the bottom of our hearts we can’t get eternal life. Seeking for forgiveness and forgiving is the knot of peace,” he said.
Rugirangoga is also a pact protector. He forgave the killers of his parent and supported their children’s education.
“Both perpetrators and survivors have one another’s keys to heaven; no one should blame another. Whoever opts to seek for pardon should do so and the other side should forgive. We are like being burnt in a house that is open; for us to get out from that house, we need one another,” he said.
Speaking at the Mass, the Minister of Sports and Culture, Julienne Uwacu said that Christians really know that the death is not the end of life based on Jesus’ history.
She said that remembrance of Jesus’ death should bring people to honor and remember the death genocide against the Tutsi victims succumbed to.
“It would be a shame to see people remembering Jesus’ death which they didn’t witness and forget the death of children, parents among others who died the similar death as Jesus,” she said.
She urged Christians to sacrifice different necessities during the commemoration period. She stressed on role of forgiveness as a weapon towards a secured country.
“The country, peace and security we have today are the price of forgiveness. The country has pardoned and put forward the unity of people,” she added.
The healing Mass was organized by Catholic Church’s Regina Pacis Parish Remera.
Aegis Trust in an international organization that works to prevent genocide, crimes against humanity and mass atrocities worldwide.
Aegis Trust was recognized yesterday in an event that took place at Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre in Gisozi for preserving genocide history and outstanding role in peace promotion.
The award was named after ‘Raphael Lemkin’, of Poland-Jewish descent who coined the word ‘genocide’ between 1943 and 1944 and initiated the Genocide Convention.
While presenting the award, the Poland Foreign Affairs Minister, Jacek Czaputowicz said that it is terrible to see how the world failed to prevent the genocide from reoccurring after the one that had been committed against the Jewish and latter that committed against the Tutsi.
“Over 250,000 victims who died as a result of hatred are laid to rest in this place, it simply means that the World has failed to combat the proliferation of crimes and murder,” he said.
Speaking about Aegis Trust’s job, Jacek said that it is not only justice that has the job to prevent genocide from happening, but they need other humble people who have to maintain history and promote peace so that what happened would not re-occur.
The State Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and East African Community, Ambassador Olivier Nduhungirehe said that the genocide could not happen when they are no preparation activities like trivializing the human being.
He said that it is miserable to see countries which do not arrest or bring genocide against the Tutsi suspects to book.
“I thank countries that arrested, tried or extradited people suspected of role in the genocide against the Tutsi. But, we still have the journey as many countries especially in Europe and North America continue to drag feet in bringing suspects to book,” he said.
Aegis Trust Regional Director, Freddy Mutanguha welcomed the award saying such recognition encourages them to work harder.
“This award comes to raise our voice in uniting people and countries and we aim to increase efforts in fighting the genocide, murder and loss of lives of innocents in the World,” he said.
Nduhungirehe said that they discussed accessing Polish expertise in different sectors like in agriculture.
“We also discussed cooperation in international peace and security activities as Rwanda is the fifth country which provides many peacekeepers Worldwide, but Poland is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) member and has expertise in security issue, so, we discussed cooperation aimed at promoting peace and security Worldwide,” he explained.
He also said that they discussed African Union-European Union relations and peace and security in the region.
On Friday, Nduhungirehe received copies of the credentials from the newly appointed ambassador of Poland in Rwanda, Krzysztof Buzalski who will have residence in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and Chief Secretary to the Office of the President and Cabinet Dr. Misheck Sibanda and his deputies were also in attendance.
In Zimbabwe, Akamanzi was accompanied by RDB chief operations officer, Emmanuel Hategeka.
The two shared their experiences on how Rwanda managed to improve the ease of doing business and economic performance after emerging from the genocide against the Tutsi in 1994.
President Mnangagwa said he was smitten by Rwanda’s way of doing business when he went for an African Union (AU) summit last month.
“During my visit to Rwanda, I was impressed. I met the CEOs of Rwanda and hardly anybody was above 50; very young. I did not know why, and President Paul Kagame explained to me. We then agreed that a team be sent here to share with us their experiences,” President Mnangagwa told his audience yesterday.
“Rwanda is not as gifted as Zimbabwe in terms of resources and is 15 times smaller than Zimbabwe in size, but the manner in which they are organised is a marvel. I felt it was necessary for you my colleagues to be exposed to Kigali and I asked President Kagame to send us his team,” he said.
“I have no doubt a majority of us will appreciate what Rwanda has achieved, especially in the manner they process investment. It’s like a machine. Here we do not even know when an investor comes or where he will stay and he may spend three weeks moving from one ministry to another. If the minister is out, the investor may wait for him to come back; it’s absolutely unnecessary. Systems must continue to function and this is what we want to achieve,” he said.
Akamanzi said their invitation by the Zimbabwean Government showed the country was keen to follow through on its commitment to open up and develop its economy.
“Zimbabwe is not only open for business, but clearly you mean business, Mr President,” she said.
For Rwanda to make significant progress, she said, it stressed unity, accountability and aiming high.
“We united our people because we came from a history of division. The first priority was to ensure that the Rwanda that was being built was united; that everyone could see themselves in. The youths, women, educated, rural and urban and all those that came from outside the country to be part of the rebuilding. So unity was very important,” she said.
“The second thing President (Kagame) said was thinking big. Even though we were coming from the lowest place you could imagine, even though we had a divided past, even though we had challenges such as being a landlocked country with few skilled people, the point was how could we think about that and aim high. How can we think Rwanda can achieve what other developed countries can achieve. Thinking big changed our mindest and trained us,” she explained.
She said Rwanda also established strong institutions to enhance accountability.
“Accountability ensured leaders remained accountable to the citizens and the citizens remained accountable to the leaders,” she added.
Hategeka told the same meeting that central to Rwanda’s transformation was the private sector, including running the public service as efficient as the private sector.
“Our President (Kagame) ran the country like a company and so there were performance contracts. It’s not exclusive to enterprises and corporations, it also works in the public service. And every ministry and government employee at the beginning had to sign performance contracts that contained the priorities that impact positively on the lives of the people, and was signed by the President,” he said.
Hategeka said there was also deliberate effort for Government, civil society, the private sector and citizens to work around an agreed agenda and national vision.
“The national dialogue brought accountability. It was a moment of truth,” he said.
Rwanda has made significant progress towards gender inclusivity, with 64 percent of its leadership being women.
The Rwanda Development Board is a one-stop centre responsible for making instant decisions on investment inquiries across all sectors of the economy and as a result, it only takes six hours for one to start a business in Rwanda.
Makuza was speaking Friday while closing the commemoration week at Rebero Genocide Memorial in Kigali where slain politicians are laid to rest.
He said that Rwandans have committed commemoration period as time to re-dignify victims of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi who had been ridiculed and brutality killed.
“Every day, we should use this time to challenge ourselves, remind one another and reflect on the reason that caused this to happen,” he said.
He reminded that commemoration activities continue in 100 days from different parts of the country. He said that commemorating is a Rwandan culture that has been there from the past.
“Our ancestors believed that when a person is dead does not that they are completely gone. Rwandans used to commemorate their family members and at the events they used to practice rituals which aimed at showing the deceased that families still love, honor and value them,” he said.
Makuza said that commemoration shows the value and right a human being has had in Rwandan society.
For the genocide against the Tutsi, Makuza said is a special programme coming from the recent bad history of the country, a history which he said was caused by bad politics.
“The politics of divisionism and hatred led us to the genocide against the Tutsi and ruined Rwandan community starting from survivors and other consequences caused,” he added.
In a way to generate solutions to problems, Makuza said that the country chose to ‘remember-unite and renew’.
Makuza said that the genocide against the Tutsi did not happen by accident; he said it was prepared and happened due to bad politics and leadership.
Speaking about slain politicians, Makuza said that if the country had had many politicians which similar spirit, the genocide would never have happened nor had such severity.
“The honor we owe these politicians we commemorate today is to embrace their heritage and assume the responsibilities to avoid any divisionism but uphold unity of Rwandans,” he said.
“Commemorating politicians laid to rest in this memorial site reminds us to borrow a leaf from them as all Rwandans, politicians and leaders from different categories,” he added.
Twelve politicians and over 14,000 more victims of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi are laid to rest there at Rebero Genocide Memorial Center.
Lomas was speaking to the media on Thursday shortly after paying courtesy call to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Johnston Busingye.
Lomas said that they had wide range discussions about various international judicial issues including the case of genocide suspects living in the UK.
“I have really showed the minister that this is an issue we take very seriously, it is however a judiciary issue, not political issue we can’t get involved. I assured the minister that the metropolitan police have launched a preliminary investigation to see whether there would be a case that would be brought to court and punished by law, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will decide on that. There is always that investigation and we have showed the government of Rwanda that we are taking this case seriously,” she told journalists.
Busingye said that the issue of genocide fugitives is close to the hearts of Rwanda’s justice system, Rwandan population and the government.
“I raised all the issues that need to be raised; one of them is the time it is taking, it is now twelve years since we started trying to get these people extradited to Rwanda for trial. It’s now one year since we said, well, if you cannot extradite these people try them,” he said.
Busingye said that the high commissioner assured him that the metropolitan police have seriously taken on the issue.
“What I expressed seriously is that to us time is of essence whether these people will be put to trial and their innocence or guilt get proved is so important in their lifetime, it is useless after they are dead,” he explained.
On whether suspects could get fair trial in Rwanda, Busingye said that justice system should interrogate itself more because many countries across the globe have extradited suspects at different phases of cases and that kind of fear has not been there.
“We have not had the fears expressed by British Justice system justified in any of the cases that have come from the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Canada and USA among other countries that have extradited people here,” he added.
{{About genocide suspects in the UK}}
Vincent Bajinya also known as Brown is suspected of being in a group that had been working closing with former President Juvénal Habyarimana in the preparation of genocide. He’s suspected on participation in acts that killed many people in Kigali.
He was arrested by Police in the UK on December 28th 2006 following the call by government of Rwanda.
Célestin Mutabaruka had been a pastor in Pentecostal Church before the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. He’s suspected on collaboration with Interahamwe in preparation, coordination and execution of mass killing that took lives of over 20,000.
Charles Munyaneza had been the mayor of former Kinyamakara commune in Gikongoro Prefecture. He’s suspected on role in preparation and execution of genocide, and heading and organizing the attacks at Mwogo River in former Gikongoro, the attacks killed many Tutsi.
Célestin Ugirashebuja was born in 1953. He had been the mayor of former Kigoma Commune in Gitarama Prefecture. He is suspected on planning and execution of genocide in the commune. It is said that he ordered the killing of Tutsi who were carried at his office and ordered Hutu to hunt all Tutsi who had hidden.
In the second week of April 1994, Ugirashebuja led an attack which had been hunting and raping women.
Emmanuel Nteziryayo had been the mayor of former Mudasomwa commune in Gikongoro Prefecture. He is suspected on planning and execution of genocide. He also led the attack that killed many Tutsi in the region.
The statement from the Office of the Prime Minister says that sacked are former Director General, Dr. Mark Cyubahiro Bagabe, Dr. Daphrose Gahakwa, who had been the Deputy Director General, Innocent Nzeyimana former Head of Animal Husbandry and Land Husbandry, Irrigation and Mechanisation Department and Violette Nyirasangwa, who had been the Head of Corporate Services.
On January 19th this year, the Cabinet suspended Dr. Mark Cyubahiro Bagabe from serving as Rwanda Agricultural Board (RAB) Director General and immediately replaced him with Dr. Patrick Karangwa who, heretofore, had been the head of research department at RAB.
Speaking to IGIHE, the Agriculture Communication and Information Programme Manager at the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), Ange Soubirous Tambineza said that the ministry was not given details of Bagabe’s suspension saying that it was in the capacity of the body that took the decision.
“It is the decision by the Cabinet Meeting as it is in their capacity,” she said.
“What matters is to have the institution well managed and impact the lives of farmers and the economy,” she said.
On the other hand, Dr. Gahakwa, Nzeyimana and Nyiransangwa had been suspended by Prime Minister Dr. Eduard Ngirente on November 22nd last year.
Recently, a reliable source told IGIHE that MINAGRI admits to the problems in RAB.
“RAB is a very big institution which implements all programmes in agriculture sector. The Ministry coordinates, establishes policies and seeks funding and capacity building for agricultural sector among others,” a source said.
As an institution which implements different responsibilities, it is easy to have many challenges, the source said.
According to source, Bagabe and Dr. Gahakwa among others had been under investigation.
For the case with Bagabe alone, the source said that he did not want to collaborate with his bosses in MINAGRI.
“Bagabe did not want to collaborate and respect his bosses in the Ministry. He just wanted to work as an independent institution without reporting to the Ministry,” a source said.
On February 19th when MINAGRI Minister, Dr. Geraldine Mukeshimana was appearing before the MPs’ plenary session responding to several questions regarding the ministry which were raised in different parliamentary committees’ reports, MPs requested questioned problems in RAB management.
Among the problems raised are irrigation machines which provide law production compared to the budget that spent on them, agro-collection centers and post-harvest handling practices.
MP Marie Josée Kankera questioned whether continuing rotation and dismissal of officials in RAB would not be the reason behind poor performance of agriculture sector.
“Replacing an official who does not implement responsibilities is normal, we thank for government efforts to hold into account leaders and dismiss those who fail to implement their responsibilities. But I want to stress RAB officials rotation. Particularly, I think that it affects our production and attracts these problem in agriculture,” she said.
She said that every official entering the institution takes time to analyse problems and initiate measures to solve them.
“A number of PhD holders who were appointed in that board did not last there, doesn’t this attract agricultural and animal resources’ problems that the board should have been responding to? I would like to know whether there are measures to make management of that board stable, because I think that when the management is working properly, all things go well,” she said.
Also read: http://en.igihe.com/news/what-is-rab-s-problem.html?var_mode=calcul
The handover ceremony took place in Kigali on Thursday.
Speaking at the event, Musoni thanked President Paul Kagame who had trusted and appointed him in various positions.
He thanked for the cooperation with State Ministers and the ministry staff in implementing different programs.
“I would like to use this opportunity to welcome Gatete and thank him for taking responsibilities to head this ministry, it is an honor, it is a challenging job, but fortunately he will not get challenged as he had been encountering with different programmes of this ministry,” he said.
Speaking at the event, Gatete said that the ministry has different projects to implement in line with government’s vision.
He said he will continue with implementing programs of building roads, water and electricity which would be accessible to all Rwandans.
“The job of this ministry is not such easy,” he said.
He said that he will invest efforts in electricity distribution programmes, where the country targets 100% population access by 2024 from the current 40%.
Gatete was appointed in Mininfra by President Paul Kagame on April 6th. He had been the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning since 2013.
The suspended are Dr. Joyce Musabe who has been the Head of Curriculum, Teaching and Learning Resources Department, Dr. Michael Tusiime Rwibasira Head of Examinations, Selection and Assessment Department; Peter Mujiji, Head of Corporate Division, Francis Karegesa Director of Finance and Rutaha Bagaya who had been the Head of Procurement Unit.
Following the dismissal, on Thursday, the Ministry of Education and affiliated institutions convened a meeting that was chaired by Education Minister, Dr. Eugène Mutimura during which he said that all officials were suspended for falling short of expected performance targets in the implementation of education programmes.
He cited delays in delivering certificates to high school leavers which are, besides, printed from abroad contrary to the government decision of getting them locally produced.
“It used to take long period for high school leavers to get their certificates; this affected them, missing opportunities to enter universities. Printing the certificates from abroad is also contrary to the government programme of promoting Made in Rwanda products,” he explained.
The decision to produce certificates locally was announced in March last year by former Education Minister, Dr Papias Musafiri Malimba. He said that even certificates for university graduates would be produced from the country.
Among other reasons to suspend the officials, Mutimura said include the delay of distribution of academic materials in schools like books.
“There are many books which are not distributed to schools. Those for Competence Based Curriculum (CBC) are scattered across different households or district offices than being in schools. That is a problem because it affected the academic programme and students will not sit for all intended subjects this year,” he explained.
He said that whoever will hamper the implementation of government programme will face punishment.
In the cabinet meeting yesterday, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Education in charge of Primary and Secondary Education informed members that the 2018 national examinations in secondary schools for Ordinary Level and for Advanced Level shall be done for the same subjects as it was in the last school year.
He said, the additional subjects introduced in 2016 with the implementation of the new Competence-Based Curriculum which are ICT, Literature in English, French and Kiswahili in Ordinary Level and Sub-mathematics as well as French in Advanced level shall not be part of 2018 national examinations due to various challenges faced in the implementation of the Competence Based Curriculum.
Asked whether suspended officials would not face justice, Mutimura said that institutions in charge will investigate their cases.
The commemoration event took place in Paris, France on Tuesday.
Rwandan envoy in France described the presence of Audouard as a great step towards good relations between both countries.
At the event was also representatives of France presidency (L’Elysee) and Foreign Affairs Ministry (Quai d’Orsay) representative, Rémi Marechaux.
Speaking to IGIHE, the ambassador of Rwanda in France, Jacques Kabale said that the presence of France dignitaries is a great step towards good relations of both countries.
The event was also attended by representatives of France government, Members of Parliament, diplomatic corps and representatives of international organisations and different organisations like Ibuka-France among others.
“We appreciated their presence, we consider it as an act of good will and partnership between both countries,” Said Ambassador Kabale.
Kabale said that it is a small step that is being made towards good relations and hopes that they will bring good impact.
On April 7th when Rwandans started mourning week and 100 days of commemoration, France issued a statement comforting Rwandans during the commemoration period.
