Karangazi: Inhabitants report their concerns to the Ombudsman

This Monday, May, 05, the Ombudsman was in the Nyagatre desitrict to hear from local people ‘concerns.  She was with the officials of the district and the sector levels.

One of the mostly debated issue is the one of a 19 years old young lady whose name is Uwimana Angelique from Karangazi Sector. She brought a land and the land has been confiscated by the Sector’s office through illegal means, she said.

According to her,  the land was confiscated because she used it for purposes that are different from what was sector wanted the land to be used for, she told the Ombudsman Cyanzayire Aloysie .

Many people from the Nyagatare and Karangazi told the Ombudsman that they have not been paid for their belongings destroyed by the wild animals of the Akagera National Park.

Uwimana Angelique told the Ombudsman that the sector took back her land and gave it back to Fred Urayeneza from whom she bought the land.

The Sector officials told the young lady that she built a house in the land while the loan was for animal breeding activities.

She said that the executive secretary of the Karangazi is the one who forced her to stop working in the land and gave to back to the former owner Fred Urayeneza.

Uwimana affirmed that the grassroots officials were willing to retake her land illegally and this pushed her to stand up for her rights.

The executive secretary of  Karangazi sector promised her to cater for the situation  before the end of last year but the case was not seriously and definitely handled, thus to bring it to the Ombudsman.

The orphan Uwimana told the Ombudsman that the case has been brought to the District officials but they told her that the case has to be handled by officials from the sector level.

Reacting to the sayings of Uwimana, the Mayor of the Nyagatare district, Atuhe Sabiti Fred said the Uwimana bought a land but used it for construction activities while it was set for animal breeding activities.

He recognized that the fact that she used the land for different purposes should not cause her loose her land.

The Ombudsman vehemently urged the Nyagatare and Karangazi officials to handle the Uwimana ‘s case as soon as possible and be well informed and  responsive to the concerns of the population, as their core responsibility .

This program to hear from people’s concerns acrossRwanda has started in 2012 and has covered different districts such as Rubavu, Musanze, Rwamagana , Burera and Nyabihu.

The program will be carried out in more districts in the coming months.

UM– USEKE.RW