A former minister of education in Rwanda has been convicted of corruption, APA can report on Wednesday.
Dr Daphrose Gahakwa who was also appointed as head of several government agencies including the Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB), was charged with corruption and subsequently remanded for 30 days, a judicial source confirmed to APA.
Dr Gahakwa was accused of abusing authority at the helm of the Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB), embezzlement and favoritism.
She faces charges of the misuse of public resources and abuse of office by fraudulently awarding a tender during her time as head of Rwanda Agriculture Board.
The court decided to remand her after the prosecution last week pinned her on fraudulently awarding a tender whereby in 2016, she approved an Rwf800 million ($1 USD = 970 Rwandan Francs) irrigation tender to her son-in-law.
According to the prosecution, the former minister’s husband, Pierre Rudakemwa Gahakwa, was among the lead consultants who were also hired to supervise the implementation of the irrigation project.
The prosecution said that Ms. Gahakwa signed this tender at a time when the institution was struggling financially.
At the time, the former minister explained that the procurement department put the tender up for bidding before she assumed office and that she signed it without knowledge that it was her son-in-law who won the tender.
She also said that her office even consulted the Ministry of Justice before the tender was approved.
During the ruling, which was pronounced in Gahakwa’s absence, the judge rejected her request and decided to remand her for 30 days, saying her arguments were not convincing.
CU/as/APA