Controversy has continued to surround the life of Rwandan Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Richard Sezibera who was recently admitted at Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi Kenya after food poisoning while on a trip to Europe.
According to Sezibera’s family and close friends, they were denied access to him and do not know his whereabouts.
It is reported that the media in Rwanda which is largely controlled by the country’s military intelligence has been barred from writing about Sezibera’s health conditions or his where abouts.
Kigali only chose to confirm Sezibera’s sickness through a French paper Jeune Africa which is renowned for publishing Paul Kagame’s exclusive interviews and providing PR for Rwanda government.
The paper however did not provide further details about Sezibera’s sickness.
The ministry which he heads also remains tight lipped about the matter.
Friends and family say they want the government of Rwanda to tell them where Richard Sezibera is, what happened to him and when he is getting back on his feet.
Dr Sezibera is said to have been oriented towards recognizing Rwandan opposition and preferred peaceful resolution of political contestation in Rwanda, where his predecessor Louise Mushikiwabo preferred to criminalize, demonize and genocidize Rwandan opposition in exile.
He has also been a constant figure in regional diplomacy and refrained from name calling and feisty speeches, especially regarding the Rwanda- Uganda border closure, where he didn’t use any of the Paul Kagame talking points.
He instead went for the most reasonable explanation, road works, which forced the appointing authority to yank the narrative away from him and called it a political issue.
Dr Richard Sezibera is a Makerere University Medical School alumnus.
He is just below Rt Hon Prime Minister Rugunda .The others who managed to rise above his level in any political responsibility were Dr Kiseka, Dr Kazibwe and Dr Bukenya who served as Uganda’s Vice Presidents. Dr Kiyonga, who is the current Ugandan ambassador to China, was Minister of Defence.
Dr Gideon Rukundo Rugari a close friend of Sezibera wants the government of Rwanda to provide information on the well-being of Dr Sezibera.
“Our Alumni are everywhere in the world and there are few Hospitals, including North America where we don’t have representatives. If you should be one of the doctors taking care of him and you were at Makerere University Medical School, he is family. Do the needful”. Says Dr Rukundo.
`Sezibera was airlifted to Nairobi for specialized treatment after a protracted battle with government which he speaks for after he had been denied exit to Kenya.
He was later authorized to go after his life deteriorated.
It is reported that early July this year Amb Sezibera made a trip to United Kingdom for a meeting with commonwealth commissioners to discuss several issues ahead of the June 2020 CHOGM meeting to be hosted in Kigali Rwanda.
It is further reported that while in the UK, Rwanda’s ambassador to UK – Yamina Karitanyi invited Dr Sezibera for dinner at her embassy.
“It was during this dinner at Rwanda’s ambassador’s residence in the U.K that we suspect that Dr Sezibera was poisoned”A source says.
The operation was reportedly coordinated by a one Jimmy Uwizeye a Rwandan external intelligence operative who was declared in 2006 a persona non grata in Uganda due to his subversive activities but later deployed to UK by Rwandan government.
It should be noted that Uwizeye was expelled from Uganda in November 2006 after Uganda accused him of involvement in clandestine operations against Uganda.
From UK, Dr Richard Sezibera went to France for other foreign office engagements, where he started feeling weak with internal pains.
By the time the minister returned to Kigali, he was severely sick and bedridden.
Family members who talked to this website on condition of anonymity said government first declined to grant them permission to fly him abroad for specialized treatment not until the situations deteriorated before he was airlifted to Aga Khan Hospital private wing where he is currently admitted.
However, he is reportedly been referred to India or Singapore for better specialized treatment.
A family member says Kigali is yet to approve the transfer.
“At the moment Sezibera is still in critical condition and in danger of losing his life at any time”.
Source: Command1post.com
