This year, the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) will be celebrating its 30th anniversary – in its present form – after evolving from the Rwandese Alliance for National Unity RANU)into a fully fledged liberation movement.

Looking back then, there have been a lot of changes to the Rwanda we see today. A country had to be reengineered right from scratch. Even today, that smell of a coat of fresh paint still lingers in the air

Quoting liberally from one five-year old article from one of our regular contributors, "... Rwanda had to be turned into a country that was at peace with herself and other countries, dealing with these countries on the basis of mutual respect and gain”.

That road has not been travelled without circumventing numerous hurdles and challenges, but thanks to a clear programme (A nine-point programme that was improved from RPF’s original eight-point blueprint), the country was able to stay the course.

The RPF is now like a dotting grandfather watching his offspring navigate the journey from childhood to maturity. It has kept its hands firmly on the steering wheel and has become a stickler to detail and discipline.

At 30, the RPF is a relatively young organisation and that is its advantage. It has not fallen into the lethargic stupor of bureaucracy that has been the outdoing of previously respected organisations; it does not have that luxury.

There is still some distance to travel, but there is no doubt that if the country continues on its present trajectory, nothing will be impossible to achieve.

Well, even the doubting Thomases grudgingly give it respect, because, as the saying goes; "les faits sont têtue” (Truth is stubborn).