Say no to poor service, Musoni tells Kigali residents

The Minister of Local Government, James Musoni has urged Rwandans to strongly reject poor service delivery and report those who undermine government programmes.Musoni made the remarks yesterday during the monthly community work (Umuganda) where he joined the resident of Imena village, Kiyovu Cell, Nyarugenge District to clear bushes around the area as well as cleaning the streets.“This community work that we are participating in and want all to be part of has a purpose; to enable us to develop this country with what we have,” he said.He commended Rwandans for owning Umuganda which he said portrays the good image of the country by promoting dignity and self worth.“At this stage where we have reached, we shouldn’t accept poor services. People should notify and report those who slow down government programmes,” he said.Musoni called upon residents to contribute to Agaciro Development Fund (AgDF) which he said was a solution to spur the country’s growth by Rwandans themselves.“We should continue to build our country without waiting for others to build it for us”.Agaciro Fund is the nation’s first solidarity fund which will be financed solely through voluntary donations from Rwandans and friends of Rwanda.So, far, more than 1.2 billion has been raised towards the fund that will supplement other sources of revenues so as to accelerate the country’s social-economic development.The idea of a solidarity fund was initially floated in 2011 during the National Dialogue (Umushyikirano) – a two day event, hosted by the President where ideas are openly exchanged and progress examined with national and global participation through the use of modern technology. The Local Government Minister emphasised that nobody will be penalised or denied any service because they have not contributed to Agaciro Fund or any other programme. “I don’t think there is any Rwandan who can refuse to be part of the country’s development process and those who do so, need to be fully sensitised and understand the benefits behind participating directly in their own development,” he noted.“Umuganda has enabled us to achieve a lot in terms of social and economic development and good governance.”After the community service, people engaged in interactive discussions with the leaders where they raised some of the issues that affect them and were given solutions.Fidele Ndayisaba, the Mayor of Kigali, said Umuganda was one of many traditional innovative home grown solutions that propel the development of the country.“We should own Agaciro fund like the way we own Umuganda. Citizens have a right to participate fully in the government plans,” he noted.Ndayisaba also emphasised on the rejection of poor service delivery, saying that citizens have a right to take action against those who try to impede government programmes.“It is everybody’s responsibility to ensure that such services are gradually received by all in a good manner within the limits of available resources.”