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The Director General of Rwanda Housing Authority (RHA) Esther Mutamba has called upon Rwandans to consider People With Disabilities (PWDs)’s accessibility to their constructed buildings.

The concern has been brought publicly by the PWDs meeting with RHA, and engineers.

Mutamba says the biggest challenge lies in the already existing buildings adding that the new ones to be built will have to meet the check list that gives PWDs accessibility provisions.

She added that these buildings have not catered for parking slots closest to the entrance, an alternative for stairs like elevators.

“Most buildings that have been constructed are difficult for PWDs to access for their public services,” Mutamba said.

according to Mutamba, PWDs have faced this challenge in both public and commercial buildings.

She also requested the banks to lower the counters to enable PWDs to access their services with ease.

A public awareness is also scheduled through various tools including advertisement, public debate.

Fifty public buildings including hospitals, banks and hotels in Kigali met the required standards.

Circus engulfed the School of Finance and Banking (SFB) as one of the students Justin Serugendo decides to protest against his expulsion a decision that made him resort to sleep in a tree at the main city round about.

This has raised debates among students at SFB with some behind the decision taken by their fellow student praising him for having done a brave thing and some dishonoring the decision as improper.

The Genesis

In his letter dated October 12, 2011 of which Igihe.com has seen, Serugendo’s described his expulsion as unfair decision taken against him by university authorities.

Serugendo decried for justice from the school’s decision to expel him. The disturbing part as narrated by Serugendo is that 84points of his marks went missing a way he doesn’t understand.

“After completing 24 courses which cost me Rwf 1,500,000 that I paid personally and now in several debts, the school authority has taken their decision to expel me. What hurts me most is that they have chased me after being promoted to 3rd year where I studied for one month and eight days paying Rwf 283,000. Now in a bid to take away my life they have taken away my 84 points which are equivalent to 9% so that I cannot be admitted elsewhere.” Serugendo said in his letter.

Serugendo had emphasized he will not leave the tree unless university authorities especially the Vice Rector in Charge of Academics, police and journalists arrive at the scene.

Comments from fellow students

A third year female student from SFB who declined to say her name said that their colleague did what is right despite the rain that dropped on him while in the tree.

“Speaking the truth, our authorities say they want quality in academics but you find that they are bringing misery to our lives; there are times our marks are missing with no explanation, and other times they mark badly. But how can you study from 1st year to 3rd year without knowing your marks? Do you know that from 1st year we don’t know our marks?” She said.

Quest for rights

Engulfed by anger to the point of failing to talk Alice a 3rd year student who declined to mention her second name said that the level of injustice they face at SFB has never existed in other universities in Rwanda.

“I want to tell you that right now no one is allowed to re-seat a second paper (Supplementary papers), what hurts us most is that whether you are sick to the death point or you have lost some one, they can’t give you the paper once you come back. They instead oblige one to re-take the paper as if you failed the first seating and once you fail this paper they automatically chase you.” Alice said.

“Even though I was lucky this year and passed, I support my colleague for the brave action taken because he was fighting for all our rights and leaving that aside no one is happy when his colleague is expelled because what follows the expulsion is poor conditions of leaving.

University Student authorities told igihe.com that Serugendo had mental condition following his recent visit to Kanombe military hospital for cross examination though said to have been in a stable conditions.

SFB student authorities said that it is normal that a student who fail one subject is likely to be expelled or would do it in the following year but that when he fails a course.

Responding to a similar case involving 36 students from SFB who were expelled the student’s guild president said;- “We notified the University authorities requesting them to discuss the matter and see if there is something else they can do so that these fellow can continue with their studies but we are still waiting up to now. May be something will be done,”

University authorities said that the decision taken by Serugendo is a disgraced one because it wasn’t how the problem should have been handled.

However, students on the other hand rejoiced calling their colleagues a hero for the decision taken despite the rain.

The SFB Vice-Rector in charge of Academic (VRAC), Dr Papias Musafiri said that the intention of stopping students from doing Special/Supplementary exams is that they want quality and students to pass.

“If someone only passes after doing re-takes, he completes his university education with low marks such that it becomes hard for him to get a good job or be admitted in another university for masters. We therefore enforced these bylaws to wake up students to take studies seriously,” Musafiri said.

Kenya Airways (KQ) largest shareholders including government of Kenya and KLM airliner have this Friday approved the Rights Issue plan for the company. KQ currently has approximately 76, 000 shareholders globally.

This will be done through raising the additional capital by way of a rights issue to finance the airline’s 10-year expansion plan.

The agreement upon the plan was reached during the 35th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Nairobi-Kenya paving way for KQ to acquire additional aircraft to drive its fleet and route expansion program as the company seeks to consolidate its presence on the African continent.

KQ Chairman Evanson Mwaniki said,“The Rights Issue is critical to growth and expansion plans of the airline. The Board believes that, for KQ to grow its fleet and route network, it’s necessary to raise additional capital.”

“We want to grow our presence in Africa and Asia and tap into key routes before our competitors. We cannot do so without additional aircraft and therefore need more capital considering that aircraft are expensive assets,” Mwaniki explained to shareholders.

He also announced that the government of Kenya and KLM, two key shareholders, had already confirmed that they will be taking up their rights once the process receives a regulatory nod.

KQ Managing Director and CEO, Dr. Titus Naikuni said the funds raised would be used to finance aircraft acquisition.

Shareholders also approved an increase in the authorized share capital of the Company from Ksh5 billion to Ksh10 billion to enable the company go ahead with the Rights Issue.

Local shareholders control 74% of the airline, and during the meeting, shareholders approved a first and final dividend of Sh1.50 for the financial year ended 31st March 2011.

In this regard while speaking to igihe.com in Nairobi, Naikuni challenged Rwandans to take part in buying KQ shares. “Rwandans should be part of the shareholders.”

The committee that convened after the general meeting in a closed session further approved a change to the company’s articles of association to include providing advanced training and education in relation to the aviation industry.

KQ has invested over Ksh2 billion in a simulator used to train local and foreign pilots at its Pride Center in Embakasi, Nairobi.

Responding to volatile fuel prices, Naikuni said the airline had put in place adequate measures to mitigate the rising cost of fuel through fuel and currency hedging. It’s a financial tool designed to minimize losses that may arise from sudden swings in the price of fuel in the international market.

He added that the KQ would invest more resources in training more pilots in line with the fleet expansion strategy.

Naikuni said the KQ-KLM partnership was mutually beneficial. “KLM has grown with us as an airline. We benefit from the strategic alliance with KLM by being able to fly our customers to destinations that we do not fly to directly such as North and South America.”

KQ management is currently negotiating to purchase 10 additional Embracer E190 aircraft to mainly service the African routes. KQ has also signed agreements with US-based Boeing Aircraft Manufacturing to deliver 24 new aircraft over the next five years. The first Boeing Dreamliner is expected to be delivered by fourth quarter of 2013.

Recently RwandAir, while launching its new aircraft Boeing 737-800 also announced U.S$60 million put aside by the government to acquire new aircrafts so as to boost its operations in the region and beyond.

KQ is therefore, facing a growing competition from rival regional carriers including: RwandAir, Fly540, Air Uganda, and Precision Air.

Precision Air, a Tanzania-based airliner also issued an Initial Public Offering on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange that started last Friday as it also sought to raise Shs44.6 billion (Tsh27 billion) capital to offset its fleet and expansion drive. The carrier offered 58,841,750 shares for sale at Shs785 (Tsh475) per share, with a minimum number of shares per application of 200 shares

Robert Muhire in his 20s is profiting from the floods at Nyabugogo area by carrying people on his back to cross over the floods near Nyabugogo bus terminal. the floods have submerged an area about 1km in diameter.

“I don’t mind about the rains or the flood because I am earning something. People who wish to cross the bridge just have to pay Rwf 200 and within no minute I rush them to the other side,” Muhire said.

As people gathered waiting for commuter taxi, while others crossed to another side to board taxi to get to their respective homes, Muhire scooped a chance to make more money as he worked alone.

Chantal Munyeshyaka who was trying to cross the flooded road below Nyabugogo Taxi Park has said the rate at which the swamp is rising is too fast.

“This swamp normally floods during rainy seasons but this time things have changed. The swamp is rising rapidly. Crossing the road is now a problem for us. I am scared that accidents will increase because the road is now slippery” Munyeshyaka said.

Kigali city has been for the past two days experiencing long hours of rainfall that has led to the flooding of Nyabugogo swamp.

This has affected the movement of pedestrians, while business in the area coming to a standstill.

The President of Rwanda Paul Kagame has said death penalty is not a form of justice people need. Kagame was addressing hundreds of worldwide participants who turned up for death penalty conference in Kigali.

Death penalty conference held in Kigali was among high profiled events across the globe to mark world day against death penalty.

Kagame’s remarks while addressing the participants, referred to Rwanda’s experience after 1994 Genocide.

“After wide consultations and debts Rwandans came to the conclusion that under these circumstances of executing criminals was not the form of justice that the people needed. Both victims and perpetrators need to restore their faith in the value and sanctity of life, believe in the ability to live together again and a more humane sense of justice,” Kagame said.

“The government couldn’t become a mass executioner in order to correct mass murder. So we chose to break with the past and abolish death penalty in order to move forward. We have never regretted that decision,” Kagame added.

He said that because of Rwanda’s decision towards death penalty, legal and social environment in the country provides a sense of satisfaction and security among the citizenry which reinforces belief in communal harmony and value of life.

He told the participants that Rwandans have achieved a degree of unity and reconciliation in just a decade and half because a culture of forgiveness not vengeance has taken root.

In practical terms, Kagame added saying death penalty would have meant executing more than a million people in addition to the loss Rwanda had already witnessed during the genocide.

“Regardless of the extreme circumstances there is no doubt the social consequences that would have accompanied such mass execution. What we needed most was away to punish crime and impunity, heal the physical and emotional wounds of survivors of the genocide and deliver justice to all,” He emphasied.

He said Rwanda’s experience illustrated was to make people get inspired not held by a sense of idealism opposition to the penalty.

President wondered what results have the world witnessed after centuries of administering Death penalty saying that the general conscious shows there are results adding that this should the time people to have another careful look at the issue and possibly move forward towards abolishing it.

“In my opinion to whether the death penalty should or should not be abolished lies in another question- Does the legal taking away of life really provide the most effective deterrent offering us enough substantive evidence to tie us to this form of punishment? I believe it does not,”. Kagame wondered.

Despite the pain and desire for justice Rwanda’s victims’ families felt which is understandable and cannot be ignored the kind of punishment policy would be put in a broader context.

It is this reason and historical circumstances that Rwanda took a definite stand on the subject and abolished the death penalty in the year 2007, according to president Kagame.

He says Rwanda is committed to the protection of fundamental human rights for all even though there was a time in history when some Rwandans were denied these rights including the right to life which denial culminated to the death of over 1million people in the genocide of 1994.

The genocide and its aftermath raised serious issues of justices some practical others philosophical that the government had to deal with.

The law as it existed then provided that those who had committed genocide should suffer the ultimate punishment of death.

In a just completed re-registration exercise at Gihembe refugee camp, over 2500 congolese refugees have returned Rwandan national IDs allegedly having acquired illegally.

Late August United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners including Rwandan government decided to carry out re-registration exercise to update refugee data base in the country.

As the process begun, officials discovered that some refugees had acquired Rwandan national IDs yet they can’t be both refugees and Rwandan nationals.

“We didn’t have refugee identity cards, some of us thought it wise to get Rwandan national IDs as we look for jobs because there is no way one can give you a job without any identification,” one of the refugees was quoted as saying recently adding that they had to disguise themselves as Rwandans since they spoke the same language.

Jean Claude Rwahama, the Director General in charge of Refugee Affairs in the Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs, said that however that the government has also issued electronic refugee identity cards.

Rwahama says that the new issued electronic refugee cards enables them apply for jobs in any office given one’s competence.

Anouck Bronée External Relations Officer at United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says the re-registration process is now will be extended to Kiziba camp in Karongi District.

She how however couldn’t disclose the number of refugees registered so far in the Gihembe camp saying they are still cleaning the data collected.

Mid last month, Bronee said UNHCR had in verification exercise admitted at least 12289 refugees (meaning they had not yet completed all stages of the re-registration exercise), and 7419 refugees have completed all stages of the re-registration exercise.

She added that the exercise had been carried out in the usual arrangement of updating their data since they were working on the assumption that there were about 56000 refugees in Rwanda which would mean there could be much less than or more.

The exercise involved getting the numbers of refugees, biometric, information on families, and photographs compiling information related to every individual.
Kiziba camp re-registration exercise which is expected to begin next week, is also expected to be extended Nyabiheke camp in Northern Province.

The whole exercise is expected to be completed by the end of December and results will be announced probably January 2012.

Rwanda National Police has for the first time demobilized some of its officers.

The exercise took place at National Police Academy in Musanze District where 272 police officers were discharged.

The demobilized police officers held ranks ranging from Police Constable (PC) to Chief Sergeant (C/SGT) and discharged in three categories and thus their send off package.

Among the demobilized officers, 147 were in retirement category and will receive a pay package worth 36 months of their salary; the one laid off will receive six months’ pay while those discharged due to medical reasons will receive 18 months pay.

Retired Chief Sergeant Peter Claver Nayigiziki commended RNP for having entrusted them with the noble task of maintaining law and order.

The demobilized police officers were each awarded a certificate of service in recognition for their contribution to law and order.