Embassy trashes Rwandan paper’s claim of Kikwete hosting dissidents

Dar es Salaam. The Tanzanian embassy in Rwanda has refuted reports accusing President Jakaya Kikwete of supporting members of rebel groups opposed to the government in Kigali.

The accusations were published over the weekend in the Rwandan government-owned newspaper, The News of Rwanda.

“Indeed, these reports are nothing but a bunch of dangerous lies fabricated by editors of this publication with obvious malicious intent to attack the person of the President of a friendly neighbouring country and create an impression that Tanzania is working with enemies and groups opposed to the government of Rwanda,” said a statement by acting Tanzanian High Commissioner to Rwanda, Mr Francis Mwaipaja.

The statement said the embassy of Tanzania in Rwanda was deeply saddened by the malicious and untrue reports.

The statement said the News of Rwanda, which has gained a notoriety of reporting and publishing malicious, dangerous and perpetual propaganda, quoting unnamed sources that claimed, among other things, that two founding members of the Rwanda National Congress (RNC), including Dr Theogene Rudasingwa, met secretly in Dar es Salaam with top commanders of the Democratic Forces for Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).

It said the so-called founder members of Rwanda National Congress, Dr Rudasingwa and advisor Condo Gervais together with top commanders of FDLR, namely Lt Col Wilson Irategeka and Col Hamadi, were not in Tanzania last week.

“Indeed, our records do not show that they have visited Tanzania in the recent years,” said the statement.

It added that there was no meeting of any kind at any official residence of President Kikwete, either in Dar es Salaam, in Dodoma or elsewhere for that matter.

“Indeed, President Kikwete has never met any of those people mentioned anywhere – in Tanzania or outside. Moreover, on the day that News of Rwanda claims that the meeting took place, Thursday 23rd, this month, the President was not even in the country – he was in Davos attending the meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF),” the statement said.

It added: “President Kikwete is deeply hurt by these lies and his humble advice to the editors of this publication is to stop fabricating untrue claims which potentially could create and fuel animosity and confusion among the people of our two neighbouring and friendly countries.”

The statement noted further that the Tanzanian embassy in Rwanda does not take lightly these allegations by the News of Rwanda, given the position that this publication occupies in the Rwandan public.