The recent worrying arrests of local government officials in connection with irregularities alleged in Mutual Insurance (Mutuelle de santé), the misuse of public funds by some of employees and high position leaders as presented by Auditor General to parliament have raised public concerns .

Despite of efforts of the leaders of Rwanda to bring development built upon peace and security not only in the country but also in many countries of Africa where Rwanda intervenes for the sake of regional, continental and global security such as Darfour in Sudan, CAR…..Rwandans long for another type of security, the security of public funds.

I have been reading news coverage and went through the Auditor’s report painting an alarming trend of cases as embezzlement of funds is taking another level. The report revealed that about Rwf9.7 billion worth $16.3 million could not be accounted for by Rwanda’s institutions, pointing at possible misuse of public funds by different government institutions.

According to the available Auditor General’s report, government entities could not account for the funds due to lack of supporting documents, embezzlement or/and mismanagement. I recall what Auditor-General Obadiah Biraro told the Rwanda’s parliament: “This partially supported expenditure lacked some supporting documents like utilisation reports, purchase orders and delivery notes among others.”

Another area of insecurity of public funds remarked was in the field of public tenders where some were awarded without involvement of the internal tender committees, and where they were awarded without sufficient tender documents.

Therefore, we must demand some of our leaders to shake their addiction to wasting money and start taking care of things back here at home and ensure the security of public funds to deliver adequate services and infrastructure to all Rwandans scattered in 30 districts.

The Writer is:

Emmy Arsonval Maniriho,
MBA in Airlines&Airport Management
MA in Human Rights
PGD in NGO Management
BA in Journalism and Communication
Diploma in Theology
Coimbatore City, India.
Email: [email protected]