President Paul Kagame has blamed officials over delay in solving issues within the community, case in point, the recent loss of calves to predators in Gishwati farms-Western Province.
Since a couple of weeks ago, farmers with cattle in Gishwati, a large agro pastoral area with large, green farms adjacent to Gishwati-Mukura national Park lamented loss of calves to predators.
The predators killed up to 50 calves before any action could be taken.
While officiating at the swearing-in ceremony of the newly appointed Minister of Infrastructure, Dr. Ernest Nsabimana, and the Minister of State in the Ministry of Infrastructure, Eng. Patricie Uwase, the president elaborated on how he knew about the issue and thus reminded the officials what they stand for.
“Last tine, I followed the social media as I always do and I could read that farmers were lamenting loss of their cows to predators. I called several officials, including security officials to ask them whether they were aware of the issue and they said we already know the case,” Kagame said.
“I insisted: all this I am reading, and the number of cows that were killed, you already know it for all this time, and they said yes.”
The president learnt that the officials knew the issue since 2019. When he asked them, they 0ffered to take action but his question was first to know why no action was taken for all that time.
“What kind of disease among officials, a contagious disease, what is it?”
Kagame said he reads several challenges related to health, education and others through social media, but whenever he asks people who are supposed to work on them, he understands that the issue is known for a long time but no action was ever taken.
“It does not serve to know an issue if you don’t bother solve it. But again, if, say a minister does not know issues within the community, what do they stand for?”
The head of state said, that since the face mask, a style that came with the challenge of COVID-19 does not affect eyes and ears, “there shouldn’t be any excuse as to why people don’t see nor hear.”
He used all these examples to remind that swearing in of new civil servants should not be just a ceremony, otherwise it should be just aired on television or informed to the general public through the media as a simple communique.
The president further spoke about the state of relationship between Rwanda and its neighboring countries where new progress suggest that Burundi, Uganda relations are improving.
Rwanda is also concerned with security challenges that may continue to pose armed groups in Democratic Republic of Congo, but Kagame promised that the country is prepared and ready to stick to its priority of assuring security first and foremost.
In the meantime, last week an animal that is alleged to have been killing the calves was shot killed leaving the farmers relieved.
