NEC urges mass mobilization

MUSANZE/MUHANGA – The National Electoral Commission (NEC) has urged local leaders to address challenges hindering the mobilization of residents in understanding the importance of participating in the forthcoming presidential elections. The NEC President, Professor Karangwa Chrysologue, made the call on Thursday while meeting members of the election coordinating committees and local leaders from Musanze, Gakenke and Burera districts, Local authorities presented a list of challenges citizens faced as election date edged closer. In response the NEC boss advised the local leaders to focus more on tackling those bent on discouraging residents from getting national IDs, and propagating falsehoods about the forthcoming presidential elections.“Power belongs to the citizens, it is only through the election process that they should decide who will be their leader,” he said. He added that a successful election is a sign of good governance, which could be attained by mobilizing and educating the electorate on the need to conduct such an exercise in a peaceful, free and fair manner. The Governor of Northern Province, Aimé Bosenibamwe, recommended that there should be a permanent staffers deployed to oversee the distribution of the IDs as part of addressing problems in the elections process within the community. The Officer in charge of elections in the Northern Province, made presentations on how the Northern Province community will be sensitized prior to the election dates. In Muhanga NEC has asked opinion leaders to play a significant role in educating residents to participate in the forthcoming presidential polls. The call was made by Jean de Dieu Rutatika, the Southern Province NEC commissioner during a civic education training of over 180 opinion leaders in Muhanga district, on June 3. Rutatika said that the training was aimed at bringing opinion leaders on board, so as to use their position as a means of educating the larger community. “It is important to involve opinion leaders in educating the community because their message impacts permanently on the minds of residents” Rutatika said. The trained leaders also made a commitment to promote a culture of democracy by educating residents on values of Rwandan culture, unity and working towards development of the country. Ends