Gapfizi’s final farewell

Late Brig. Gen. Dan Gapfizi who passed on in a car accident on Tuesday was yesterday laid to rest at Kanombe Military Cemetery in Kigali, in the presence of hundreds of mourners.The mourners included family members, top government officials, as well as former colleagues in the army, while some foreign countries such as Uganda, Burundi, and the United States also sent envoys.The mourners first paid their last respects at the deceased’s home in Kicukiro from 8a.m. to 11a.m and Remera Seventh Day Adventist Church from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. before proceeding to the cemetery.Gapfizi was among the soldiers of the Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA) who fought in the Liberation War that ended the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and went on with military service to help rebuild post Genocide Rwanda.In President Paul Kagame’s eulogy which was read at the funeral in Kanombe by the Minister of Defence, James Kabarebe, the Head of State said both the deceased’s family and the country had lost a brave man.“We wish you courage in this difficult moment,” Kagame told late Brig. Gen. Dan Gapfizi’s family composed of widow Diane Muhabura Gapfizi and their five children.Shock President Kagame said that the General’s death was a shock and reminded him of other heroes who died in the Liberation War.The country still needed the General’s contribution as Rwandans continue to liberate themselves from several ills, Kagame noted.“The country has lost a gallant son,” Kagame said in the speech which Gen. Kabarebe handed to the General’s widow after reading it.At around 2:40p.m. the casket containing the deceased’s body was lowered in the grave as some mourners cried quietly, while others choked back their tears in disbelief.Several wreaths were laid on Gapfizi’s grave and gun salutes were part of the send off in honour of his military career.The officer had served in various capacities in the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) at the commandant level and until his death he was working as the commandant of the Reserve Force in the Southern Region.Gapfizi was born in 1957 in Ruhango District, Southern Province, and his parents fled to Uganda with other Rwandans who were fleeing persecution in the late 1950’s and early 1960s.He joined the National Resistance Army (NRA) in Uganda where he was living as a refugee and served in the army before he joined other Rwandans in October 1990 to start the Liberation War.The accident that claimed the life of Gapfizi occurred at 5.30p.m between Karangazi and Kizirakome on the Kagitumba-Kayonza highway in Eastern Province.One Ambrose Agaba who described the accident as the worst he had ever seen told The New Times on Thursday that the General’s Land Cruiser vehicle first hit the pedestrian and then the cyclist before veering off the road.The fatal crash claimed five lives including the General’s. Clik here for more pictures