The City of Kigali has canceled all the activities related to displaying fireworks ushering in New Year’s Eve. The move aims at curbing the spread of Covid-19 through halting social gatherings and night movements among other activities. Last week, Pudence Rubingisa, the City of Kigali Mayor, had told The New Times that the city’s administration will not display any fireworks on New Year’s day but added that private institutions like hotels among others were allowed to, after being authorized. During the interview, he had said that Kigali Marriott Hotel had been the only one cleared at the time. However, speaking to The New Times on Thursday, December 31, Rubingisa said that there will be no fireworks even from private institutions. “There are no fireworks to be displayed today, we have even rescinded the permission earlier granted to Marriott hotel to display fireworks because it draws large gatherings of people which is not advisable during this period where there is an upsurge in Covid-19 cases,” he confirmed on a telephone interview. The development was also confirmed by the Marriott Hotel. A statement released by the hotel’s management reads: As we continue our new year’s celebrations, unfortunately, we have just been notified by the authorities that we can no longer have fireworks displayed on December 31. Dear Guest, Please note that unfortunately we can no longer have fireworks on the night of December 31st. We look forward to hosting you as we celebrate 2021 pic.twitter.com/MLPPehmWOH — Kigali Marriott Hotel (@KigaliMarriott) December 30, 2020 In a separate interview, Rex Nijhoff, the hotel’s General Manager, told The New Times that the hotel has to abide by the order and will not display any fireworks in Kigali skies tonight as earlier envisaged. The recent spike in Covid-19 cases prompted the government to institute new measures to deal with the virus spread, including extending curfew hours. As a result, movements are prohibited between 8 pm and 4 am, which would make the viewing of fireworks by city residents difficult. In recent years, fireworks have been drawing large gatherings around Kigali as thousands welcomed the New Year. The venues from where fireworks are launched have also grown by the years. The main sites of their launch have previously been Amahoro National Stadium, Kigali Stadium in Nyamirambo, Bumbogo Hill and Kigali Convention Centre among others.
