President Kagame on Wednesday continued his tour of Southern Province that started late last year with a visit to Ruhango District. Before meeting with thousands of residents in Ruhango town, President Kagame visited Kamonyi village where residents are soon to complete construction of houses for a new village. President Kagame also visited the home of Alphonsine Mwubahamana, a widow with five children who from humble beginnings has succeeded in establishing a model dairy, poultry and pig rearing operation with assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture. Speaking to the citizens gathered in Ruhango, President Kagame stressed the importance of security as the foundation for required in order to engage in work towards development. He called on residents to participate actively in ongoing programmes in health, education, infrastructure, investment and entrepreneurship – all aimed at taking Rwanda towards socioeconomic transformation and changing the lives of Rwandans.
President Kagame reminded residents that Ruhango was one of the birthplaces of development many decades ago but that beginning had been hijacked by bad politics and bad leadership with the result that there was nothing to show for it. Saying “the only politics I am interested is that which pulls Rwandans out of poverty and takes Rwanda towards development”, President Kagame pointed out that his duty and that of the government is to instill good politics that change the mentality of Rwandans, and to work with citizens in order to better their livelihoods. President Kagame noted that there were a number of Rwandans, mostly based outside the country, who had grown up in the age of bad politics and have been unable to advance beyond this, even after many years in more developed countries where they had failed to learn from positive political features.
President Kagame called on the population in the area to be at the forefront of initiatives meant to improve their lives and stressed that this will only be possible based on Rwandan values, hard work and the objectives Rwandans have set for themselves. He said that support from external partners was appreciated but Rwandans should be primary actors in their own development. President Kagame also stressed the need for local leaders to engage closely with the population and assist them to solve their problems
Following his address, residents at the meeting had the opportunity to present issues to President Kagame, which included land disputes and unresolved cases of injustice. Local leaders went before the meeting to explain the background and evolution of some of the issues raised, and were tasked with resolving them promptly.