RWAMAGANA - The Executive Secretary of Muhazi Sector has been arrested and detained at Rwamagana Police Station, over an alleged tender rip-off in which close to Rwf23m was lost.

Patrick Mwesige, and his wife Primitiva Hakeshimana, are accused of mismanaging the money that was meant to purchase cows under the poverty eradication programme of Ubudehe.

The Ubudehe committee in the sector alleges that there were a lot of irregularities in the purchase of the cows - the tender was initially awarded to an official working at the district, who later passed it to Hakeshimana.

Hakeshimana, who works as an accountant in the Munyiginya Sector in the same district, is said to have supplied four cows per Mudugudu, instead of five as per the agreement. 

"We were a bit shocked to find the name of the executive secretary while depositing money on the account of the person who had won the tender.

But we gave it a benefit of the doubt, since we never knew the exact procedures,” said Dancilla Murebwayire, a Committee member. 

The acting Sector Executive Secretary, Eric Zikama, alleged that Mwesige banked the funds meant for the cows in his wife’s account, which also raised suspicion. 

The provincial governor, Dr. Ephraim Kabayija, in a separate interview wondered why it took so long to unmask the irregularities in this tendering process.  

Ends