Remembrance, commemoration or memorial services are extremely important events especially when it touches the hearts of millions. In Rwanda, the month of April is a crucial month; this is the time when the horrendous genocide started. People were killed for how they looked or their political affiliation. Neighbour killed neighbour, partners killed partner, friends turned their pangas against their friends…etc. However, than using the tragic event to allow proper reconciliation, the RPF junta regime has hijacked the tragedy for their political and economic gain. The despicable tragedy has been turned into a product, in the eyes of the ruling class in Kigali the event is a mining product like petroleum or Gold.
After the 1994 Tutsi genocide, donor funds and aid flooded in Rwanda. Millions of funds channelled by donors to help genocide survivors were swindled – stolen – embezzled by Kagame and his RPF henchmen.
Scholarships meant for genocide survivors were given to children of the new ruling class whom the majority had come from Uganda. FARG which was supposed to control donor funds meant for school fees of genocide survivors, was also highly corrupt, inefficient and not fit for purpose. Than concentrating on its mandate of registering and catering for real survivors, the organisation mired in registering children of returnees who had come from Uganda, Zaire, Burundi and Tanzania, thus, the real victims missing out on the essential support.
IBUKA, an association which was formed to advance, lobby and coordinate survivors’ projects; witnessed a fair share of government interferences and intimidations, with many of IBUKA’s founding members and former leaders opting a life in exile. Now, IBUKA has been hijacked by the junta government to forward its interests rather than initial objectives of the association.
Let’s take the case of what is happening today in Dayton – Ohio, USA. The Rwandan government has extended its interfering tentacles outside it’s jurisdiction. Rwandan embassies are heavily involved in controlling Tutsi genocide remembrance day, the message and themes come from Kagame’s office. Taking Dayton as my case of analysis and how the event has been hijacked by those I may call intruders. The chief organiser and the supposed leader of the Rwandan community, is a Congolese – Rumenge Mbonigamba and he came to USA as a Congolese of Munyamurenge origin. The dude has never stepped in Rwanda at all; he went to USA through Tanzania refugee camps.
Then the embassy appointing a Rwandan, they went for a foreign stooge and an aligned spy for Rwanda’s junta rule. He was recently sacked from Catholic Social Services, a refugee related organisation, after Rwandans living in Dayton – Ohio reported to his employer about his confidentiality breach, in this case providing information of Rwandans in Ohio to his handlers @Rwandan embassy in Washington.
His vice, Eugenie Kirenga is totally a Rwandan spy accredited from the highest level and a wife to a senior RPF cadre with a rank of a Captain. This lady also works in refugee/migrant related organisation known as Welcome Dayton. For any new Rwandan refugee/asylum seekers within Ohio and the surroundings, in case their information is collected by her, it will be forwarded to Rwandan embassy in Washington for verification or any further briefing/action/instruction.
Rumenge Mbonigamba and Eugenie Kirenga, have opted the usual RPF strategy of inviting mostly foreigners for the event rather than inviting Rwandans to commemorate this despicable tragedy. This is a usual RPF approach of marketing this horror to foreigners, especially the west for the purpose of gaining political and more especially economic aid for the junta to embezzle.
Let real genocide survivors lead and organise these events, rather than hoopers who don’t know the pain that genocide survivors went through and still going through up to now. Say No to Hijackers and profiteers!!
Rpf Gakwerere
