Members of the Standing Committee on Political Affairs in the Senate, together with the Civil Society Platform, have commended this year’s parliamentary elections.Speaking at a meeting that brought together representatives of the civil society, senators and local leaders in Kayonza District, yesterday, the Chairperson of the Committee, Senator Tito Rutaremara, said the election met all required standards.Rutaremara thanked all stakeholders for having managed to adhere to the electoral procedures, adding that the process was envied by other countries.“We must agree that our election preparations were good. They met international standards in general. All people involved served with commitment which is why we succeeded,” he said.Rutaremara also lauded the transparent manner in which political parties engaged in the electioneering process, and urged Rwandans to uphold such a democratic development.“Rwandans exhibited political maturity by conducting peaceful elections. In some parts of the world, elections are marred by violence, both during the run up to and after the elections,” he said. Members of the civil society equally expressed their satisfaction in the manner which elections procedures were done across communities.Damascene Gakuba, the chairperson of the Private Sector Federation in Kayonza, asked that the time to commence voting be put at 6am instead of 7am.“Our people are concerned about the 7am time set to start elections because it makes them delay to start their business. Most of the electorate in districts belong to the private sector, where time is a big factor. The National Electoral Commission should reconsider the time of opening polling stations,” he said.
