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Rwanda: NUR Officials in Scandal
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The New Times (Kigali)
22 July 2008
Posted to the web 23 July 2008
Edmund Kagire
Kigali
TOP officials in the National University of Rwanda are involved in a quite but rocking scandal that is likely to prompt government intervention.
The scandal that started on the 12.07.2008 involves the heads of the sports department and top officials of the University.
THE NEW TIMES learnt that the scandal was sparked off when it was reported on the Butare based Radio Salus that the NUR Contingent that had traveled to Kampala to represent Rwanda in the just concluded 5th All African University Games was starving and on the verge of being thrown out of their Hotel due to lack of funds.
Sources reveal that when students back home learnt of their friends situation in Kampala, angrily accused the University management of sitting on Government funds on the expense of other people's lives.
However, the news report did not go down well with the NUR Rector Prof. Silas Rwakabamba. He accused the delegation leaders of not protecting the University's interests, and ordered for the team's immediate punishment.
This saw two of the top delegation members transferred to other departments. This did not go down well with the officials who saw it as a demotion. The New Times learnt that Albert Kayiranga, the delegation head, was transferred from the Department of Sports to the Estates department, a transfer he has since declined given his sports education background.
Inside sources at the Campus reveal that the top officials were not happy with the way the Kampala issue was exposed to the public yet it should have been handled internally.
According to the sources, on 11.07.2008, the team in Kampala was told that the University had wired money amounting to $ 14,100 through the Makerere University account, for the University teams' upkeep while there.
However the money, supposedly transferred through BNR, was never on the account until15th June, a day to the climax of the games.
The delegation leader had been sustaining the team on promises of the money coming as soon as possible. At one point after the Hotel owner threatened to throw the team out for outstanding bills, it was pondering on quitting the hotel and relocating to the Sports Village, which was inside Makerere University.
The team leader though bargained and bought more time until the funds were transferred.
Speaking to THE NEW TIMES in Kampala, Kayiranga denied sending any negative information back home about the team's welfare.
He said that the team had traveled with the Radio Salus Reporter, who clearly saw what was taking place on the ground.
"I have no right to sensor, edit or dictate what the Journalist reports, he reports what he deems right and that's it," noted Kayiranga.
When THE NEW TIMES talked to the Salus reporter who filed the report, Jado Caluster, he was defiant and swore to stick to the truth and not cover up any messes.
"The problem lies with the University administration not with the Delegation Leader or what I reported," he stated.
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UNR came third overall in the just concluded African University games. It brought gold in the Volleyball and Karate categories.
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