A new report on East Africa’s war against extremism, crime, corruption and related illicit trade has pinned Rwandan dissident Tribert Ayabatwa Rujugiro on illicit trade and terrorism financing.
The report obtained Thursday from the Counter Extremism Project which is entitled, ‘An Unholy Alliance: Links between Extremism and Illicit Trade in East Africa’ says that regional stability is increasingly threatened by the continued existence of illicit markets and trade fueled by corruption.
The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) is an international policy organization led by a renowned group of former world leaders and diplomats operating out of Germany, New York and London.
According to the report, in the East Africa region, illicit tobacco trade has been singled out to fund extremist groups, with the exiled Rwandan businessman Rujugiro at the centre of this.
In East Africa and its surrounding regions, illicit tobacco has been found to fund extremist groups in DR Congo, while also financing corrupt practices throughout the region,” the report reads in part.
Rujugiro has been using illicit proceeds from his company – Pan African Tobacco Group – to fund Rwanda National Congress (RNC), a terror group that has bases in DR Congo.
RNC was created by Rwandan dissidents with the aim of overthrowing the Rwandan government.
With the funding of Rujugiro, RNC co-founded an outfit called P5, which for the past couple of years maintained militia bases in eastern DR Congo.
CU/as/APA