Left to right Gen James Kabarebe with Kamanzii Stanislas.

When I saw the Minister of Mineral resources Mr Stanislas  Kamanzi  apologizing on behalf of the so called Bahutu community , I held my breath back because  the Minister is not only doing what he does not believe as  rational but also very contradictory when he says that he has never  had a hatred of the Tustsi community  or hidden any bad blood against them. Why then apologize on their behalf? Did he consult the so called Bahutu to get their mandate? Were the so called other Bahutu get the mandate of the Bahutu to speak on their behalf? What about those Bahutu who are against this approach who will speak on their behalf?

The first lady was on the other hand stumbling with words when she was addressing the leaders in what they call UNIT CLUB. This is the person the RPF and some political circles are speculating to front for the succession of the mantle of not only RPF but the next president of the Republic of Rwanda. As if she was demonstrating her point of authority and possibly the heir to the throne, she informed the audience that she is no longer seeing things from the back door but rather she is in the relay of the race.

Gen Iddi Amin with Gen Paul Kagame

When you watch the Hollywood movie of the last King of Scotland by the Forest Whitaker an American   star you don’t fail to ask yourself whether Rwanda is not soon becoming the state of blood. There is no doubt that the characteristics of Kagame are so close to those of Idi Amin that you can hardly draw a line between the two people.  When Kagame was answering a question on BBC Hard Talk program hosted by Stephen Sackur   whether he has been giving financial support to Laurent Nkunda a former leader of a rebel group in Congo through his former friend Rujugiro Ayabatwa, he replied that he does not care.

Similarly Idi Amin was a man who not only does not care but also a man known to invent and adopt fanciful imperial titles for himself, it is in this regard that the film Last King of Scotland is based on factual events of Amin’s rule and the title comes from a reporter in a press conference who wishes to verify whether Amin declared himself the King of Scotland.

As Kagame is trying to grip on power he will use all tactics to keep him going, indeed, the project of keeping Kagame in power was started by  Fazil Musa who is his Minister of Internal Security who argued that the Constitution should be changed  in order to give the president another term of office. As usual the president was quick to say that Fazil was making his own suggestions but not speaking on his behalf.

Fazil Musa Harerimana

Whereas the Rwandan Head of State is hatching the plan or call it (gutekinika) to keep the mantel of the state, he has failed to open the space for other players to competitively sell their ideas to the electorate. Kagame like his predecessor President Habyarimana or other African leaders like Samuel Doe of Liberia killed their opponents or their comrades who fell apart with them.   It is therefore not surprising that President Kagame is adamant to open up political space because he will be questioned on all the atrocities committed against humanity either on his watch or his orders. Has Kagame therefore made the same mistakes like his predecessors and of course his counterparts in Africa?

Liberian Head of State Samuel K. Doe

Sgt Samuel Doe

He is unlikely to go peacefully, when Samuel Doe’s regime was coming to an end he was tricked by the international community through the ECOMOG forces who had been deployed there to keep peace which in fact was not there to keep, he was called for a meeting and later was captured by his rival Prince Johnson who mutilated him until his last breath.  Kagame knows very well that his government has run out of ideas and run out of space, he cannot allow competitive politics in the country making the same mistake Habyarimana did. However, politics is not always a picnic or party of cocktails, you might just delay in power but you cannot live forever. It is not therefore surprising that he is corrupting his ministers in the same way his predecessors recruited   almost his ministers in crimes and the population calling them bantibindeba( those who don’t care). In fact all his Ministers are under instruction to spread the gospel of Ndu Munyarwanda and the whole population is sensitized on how the so called Bahutu are guilty of the crimes of genocide.

Once they have accepted the crime then they will always live on the political handouts of Kagame or call it, his mercy and messiah.  This implies that Kagame technically has closed the political door of one group of people who he calls or call themselves Hutus, the remaining part of the population is technically weak or is submissive to the orders of Kagame. The idea of the colonialists and imperialists of divide and rule is not only coming back to Rwanda but history is repeating itself.

 

Jacqueline Umurungi

Brussels.