THE Secretary General in the Ministry of Local Government, Eugene Barikana, has blamed district Mayors for constructing poor housing for vulnerable groups. Barikana said that some mayors have not taken into account the country’s programme of providing shelter for Genocide survivors and other vulnerable people as a priority. “Some of them have gone ahead and constructed houses with weak foundations while others do not meet the required standards, which is very dangerous,” Barikana said. Barikana was referring to the report by the Local Government about the progress of the construction programme presented on Friday to Mayors and Provincial Governors at Jali club in Kigali. The report indicates that some houses have mud foundations, while others are not of the size required by the Ministry of Local Government standards. Each house is supposed to have a kitchen and a toilet. According to the report, many of these houses are not constructed according to plans and consequently pose a safety threat to the inhabitants. Barikana also expressed fears that some local leaders have started constructing their own houses which might lead to misuse of the building materials from the government such as iron sheets, nails and cement. “It was unfair for some individuals to take advantage of the programme to fulfil their own desires,” he said. Mayors were also blamed for not submitting reports on time about the progress of the construction process. By Friday, only eight districts out of thirty had submitted their reports to the ministry detailing the number of houses constructed, how much money is needed and the progression of the programme. The Minister of Local Government Protais Musoni had earlier attributed the delay to the poor management systems of district mayors. Musoni said that without reports, no accountability can ever be made on what was needed to address the problem.François Niyonzima, the Mayor of Ngoma District in Eastern Province, explained that his district was struggling to get things right but still faced a many problems, especially getting iron sheets and cement on time. Amié Bosenibamwe, the Mayor of Burera District in the Northern Province said that the problem of reports would be addressed immediately. This year the government will spend more than Frw8b to construct 30,881 houses for survivors of the Genocide and other vulnerable people countrywide. Ends
