Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) is holding in custody two university lecturers over corruption. They are alleged to have received bribes from students in return for free marks. In a statement issued by RIB, the arrested are Celestin Sebeza, 35, and Francois Bagaragaza, 47. Although the investigators declined to name the university for which they work, a reliable source told The New Times that they are employees of the University of Technology and Arts Byumba (UTAB). RIB says that preliminary investigations indicate that Sebeza received bribes worth Rwf 1,355,250 from 24 students while his counterpart Bagaragaza received Rwf 457,250 from 28 students on various occasions last year. Their file has already been processed and sent to the prosecution. “Investigations are still ongoing so that anyone who played a role in these crimes will be presented before the law,” reads a statement from RIB. According to anti-corruption law, any person who is convicted of bribery is liable to imprisonment for a term of more than five years but not more than seven years with a fine of three to five times the value of the illegal benefit that they solicited or received. In a statement, Thierry Murangira, the Spokesperson of RIB, said there will be no tolerance to anyone who “asks for, receives or offers a bribe.” He called upon members of the public to cooperate with the relevant authorities by sharing information regarding corruption tendencies in their communities. “There is no other way of eradicating corruption except through cooperation among all of us so as to expose the people who ask for or receive bribe,” he noted.
