Love is the greatest value a leader can espouse, First Lady Jeannette Kagame, the Chairperson of Unity Club Intwararumuri, said on Saturday, November 16. She urged for leaders' commitment to serving the country, accomplishing responsibilities while prioritising citizens’ interests, and upholding sustainable unity for the well-being of all Rwandans. She made the remarks in during the club’s 17th Annual Forum which serves as a platform to promote dialogue that upholds Rwandan cultural values and principles. It was in line with its theme: “Ndi Umunyarwanda: Igitekerezo ngenga cy’ukubaho kwacu,” loosely translated as Ndi Umunyarwanda: The Guiding Principle of our Existence. ALSO READ: Unity Club: a beacon of hope for Rwanda's future The First Lady indicated that the club chose to maintain the same theme for this year’s forum because it is necessary to continue bearing in mind that Ndi Umunyarwanda is the vital relation of Rwandans, and “our unity is a shield that protects us from anything that may be divide us.” Unity Club Intwararumuri was founded, and is led, by First Lady Jeannette Kagame, who has championed its vision since 1996. Comprised of current and former cabinet members and their spouses, Unity Club is dedicated to promoting unity and peace as foundations for Rwanda’s sustainable development. Though good progress was made in line with Ndi Umunyarwanda’s contribution to unity among Rwandans, she said that there is a need for greater efforts to achieve the desired results, and address the remaining challenges including Genocide ideology. She said there are still some cases of wickedness and ill-intended ideology, pointing to cases where houses of survivors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi are destroyed, and their livestock killed, among others. Addressing leaders of faith-based organisations, she said that good shepherds take good care of their sheep, and train them to live harmoniously, in mutual understanding, always united, and lead them to a path of peace and kindness. “But it is sad that in our country’s history, there are some shepherds [members of the clergy] who breached that pact,” she said. “We all agree that is a major defeat,” she said, adding that “we currently have some former churches that became Genocide memorials. She told religious leaders to bear in mind their calling and put more efforts in supporting people to reconcile, and get rid of the bad history Rwandans went through. “Love is a common call for all of us in our diverse faith, and it is the greatest of all values,” she said. According to the First Lady, leaders “have the opportunity to lead a Rwanda we are proud of that changed history and ensures equality of all its people.” “Let’s recommit to serving this country by being aware of the cost of getting lost and seeing ourselves through ethnic lenses and other external factors that divide us. We should fulfil our responsibilities by prioritising citizens’ interests,” she said, pointing out that, this, coupled with building a citizen endowed with the right consciousness should also be a guiding principle as it is an armour that will protect ever-lasting unity. History-related courses in school The First Lady said that 30 years after the liberation of the country, means including the national civic education programme (Itorero), were put in place for the continuous teaching of unity. It is through Itorero that young people learn about and know the country’s history, values, and taboos, as well as appropriate behaviour, among others. “We should also teach special courses on history in Itorero and in schools [both primary and secondary] and faith-based organisations so that we help young people to better understand the past of Rwanda; how it got rebuilt, the state of our renewal, and what they are required to do so that we achieve the Rwanda we want,” she said. According to the Rwanda Reconciliation Barometer, the status of reconciliation among Rwandans stood at 94.7 per cent in the year 2020.
