The Minister for Local Government, Francis Kaboneka, has threatened to crack the whip on corrupt leaders in the Eastern Province.

The warning follows a Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) anti-corruption report that named Rwamagana and Nyagatare districts as the most corrupt in the province.

Kaboneka vowed to ensure that the corrupt leaders face the full force of the law.

He was addressing the Eastern Province annual general assembly in Rwamagana on Thursday.

The general assembly attracted leaders from the cell level up to the provincial level.

According to RGB CEO, Prof Anastase Shyaka, the report was based on findings within the communities.

"This is an unbiased report that was compiled after exhaustive research in communities…the districts affected must make efforts to reverse the trend,” he said.

Kaboneka also noted that incompetent leaders would not be tolerated.

"I am warning leaders that don’t live in the areas they govern. You must stay close to the people you serve…there is no short cut; serve the people or take another route,” he warned.

The minister expressed his frustration over the province’s failure to fully exploit its development potential.

"This province is rich…it’s the breadbasket of the nation, with over 40% of the country’s food production coming from the area. Unfortunately, most arable land is not used. Some children still suffer from malnutrition yet the area has a big population of cattle. Something is going wrong; all the stakeholders, ranging from local leaders to religious leaders, need to work together to address this,” he said.

Odette Uwamariya, the governor of the province, assured the assembly that the province’s full potential would be tapped.

"We must work around the clock to exploit the vast resources we have. There is no doubt that this is a rich province. We shall mobilise everyone to end these challenges,” she said.

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A recent Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) anti-corruption report named Rwamagana and Nyagatare districts as the most corrupt in the province.

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