Nyarugenge Intermediate Court has remanded Alphonse Umulisa, the Director General of the Institute of National Museums of Rwanda (INMR) to pave way for further investigations in a case in which he is implicated. However, his co-accused, businesswoman Olive Habiryayo was provisionally released. This came a day after the two were produced before court and formally charged, where Umulisa was charged with three counts of giving undue advantages during execution of a contract, awarding a tender without open competitive bidding and embezzlement or property destruction. Habiryayo was charged with a single count of accepting undue advantages during execution of a contract. In justifying his ruling, the judge said that the crimes Umulisa stands accused are very serious and since prosecution still had more investigations, there was no reason for him not to exert his position to subvert the course of investigation. On the other hand, court accorded bail to Olive Habiryayo saying that prosecution did not argue satisfactorily to prove whether there were more investigations against her that she would obstruct to. Habiryayo was charged with having been contracted to supply furniture to one of the national museums, but the Umulisa ordered for her to receive full payment even before she delivered all the articles she had been contracted to supply. This was also contrary to the contract entered when she was given the tender which stipulated that she was to get full amount on after supplying all the furniture. Umulisa was appointed to head the museums in 2009 and assumed office the following year.
