The country’s top leaders are now complete with the election of Parliamentary speakers
President Paul Kagame has told incoming members of government that the next five years in office have to be about delivering to the expectations of Rwandans and less about wasting time and resources, cautioning leaders against looking at themselves as ‘Very Important Persons’ in their new positions and instead get to work.
The Head of State made the call on Wednesday while presiding over the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Dr. Edouard Ngirente following his reappointment for a second term in office and the 80 new Members of Parliament (MPs) elected to the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of Rwanda.
President Kagame also oversaw the swearing-in of the new Speaker of Parliament, Gertrude Kazarwa and her deputies Sheikh Mussa Fazil Harelimana and Beline Uwineza who were elected to the bureau by the house.
He congratulated the newly elected legislators, including those returning for another term but also took time to caution them against conduct that won’t be tolerated over the next five years in which Rwandans have high expectations, among them, putting their own interests above those of the nation and looking on when mistakes are being made.
“Serving Rwandans is the most important thing and should be our first and foremost responsibility, much as it is also important to develop ourselves individually,” he said, emphasizing that the next five years come with more responsibilities and duties that leave no room for complacency.
A group photo with the newly sworn-in MPs, Speakers and other leaders pose for a group photo with President Kagame.
The Head of State said that in the past, there has been a tendency of people looking on when things are not going right while others don’t want to work together to address the challenges the country faces, reiterating that such practices will have no place in the new set up, as more members of government are expected to get in positions in the next few days.
“In our country’s governance, way of working, and politics, it is known and repeated every day by everyone, we all seem to agree that we must change our tragic history as Rwandans. We need to strengthen our governance structures, if you are elected to lead or appointed in other legal ways it is not just for people to occupy positions of leadership and think about themselves as the first thing, thinking that the benefits of their positions should start with just them, no,” President Kagame said.
“We should also benefit from our work and efforts as human beings, but in our responsibilities as leaders, we should first and foremost think about Rwandans. It is a terrible habit that never gets uprooted completely. There is something about positions, even in foreign languages people enjoy being called ‘VVIPs’,” he added.
He said that some people end up almost killing others because they don’t treat them as ‘VIPs’ while others become so full of themselves, want to be praised and carry themselves around with a sense of self-importance, a habit he said has to be done away with.
President Kagame cautioned the new leaders against looking at themselves as ‘VVIPs’
“This is definitely a bad habit. We have said many times that it should stop but I repeat it today and it should stop. If you want to feel important, I am not against you if that is who you are, but it should start with fulfilling your duties first,”
“After you have completed your responsibilities, if you still feel important, I will leave you alone, it will not offend me, only that you are the one who will have to bear the consequences. Serving Rwandans is the most important thing and should be our first and foremost responsibility,” President Kagame said.
He emphasized the importance and need to continue on the path of building a Rwanda where everyone partakes in national opportunities on merit, rather than a situation where people get in positions because they know someone or people having to engage in graft to enrich themselves.
“There are things that we are always fighting against such as corruption, favoritism, and nepotism, which we should never stop fighting against, for everyone, everywhere across our country. That is the source of our culture of working for all Rwandans without favoring anyone and leaving behind those who don’t have friends or relatives in positions of power, and they end up not receiving what was meant for them,”
It was full house as new MPs were sworn-in.
“This is our political struggle, this has been our struggle for the last 30 years. Now we are going to add another five years for this mandate that some of us have taken an oath for. It is not five years of idleness or five years of causing even more problems; it is five years of reducing the existing problems to the minimum possible,” President Kagame said.
Closure of churches
The Head of State weighed in on the ongoing crackdown on churches which do not comply with requirements, leading to an ongoing debate, with some claiming that the closures are unjust and President Kagame might not be aware of the developments.
President Kagame said that he is aware and supports the operation spearheaded by Rwanda Governance Board (RGB), which has led to the closure of more than 4,000 churches over the past month for failing to comply with health and safety standards and regulations such as soundproofing as well as sanitation and hygiene requirements.
He pointed out that most of the closed churches had become some sort of business for the founders while others become channels through which people are fleeced out of even the little they had, selling them false prophecies and empty promises.
President Kagame said that he doesn’t know how churches were established in their thousands in the first place , besides the renowned religions that existed in Rwanda. He however said that he has no problem if the churches which fulfil the requirements are allowed to operate as they should because that is their right.
He however emphasized that what needs to be checked is to see if the mushrooming churches are not taking money from Rwandans, which they would otherwise use to develop themselves. President Kagame said it had got to a point where Ministers, MPs and other officials were also going into the business of setting churches as a ‘side business’.
Among other things, he tasked the legislators to look into how the said churches can be taxed if they also take money from citizens.
