In May, Rwandan President Paul Kagame ordered a probe into his state minister Edouard Bamporiki for taking a bribe. Now, the Rwandan prosecutors are asking for a 20-year prison sentence for the former minister after he pleaded guilty on charges of corruption and abuse of office for personal gain on Wednesday.
According to The New Times Rwanda, 39-year-old Mr. Bamporiki who was in charge of youth and cultural affairs at that time, demanded and received a bribe, a crime for which he is being penalized 200 million Rwandan francs US$188,000.
In his trial at Kigali’s Nyarugenge intermediate court, Mr. Bamporiki is said to have expressed regret and said that he had just served as a middleman in a dispute involving his friend- whose beer company has since been shut down. The trial had to be postponed from September 16 to September 21, after Bamporiki’s lawyer did not show up, local media reported.
Mr. Bamporiki was suspended and given a home arrest order during the investigations ordered by Rwandan president in May. It is reported that the suspended minister apologized to Mr. Kagame on Twitter and acknowledged taking a bribe. A tweet which President Kagame responded with “being punished also helps.” It is said that Mr. Kagame claimed Mr. Bamporiki had engaged in similar crimes in the past.
President Kagame has virtually eradicated major corruption in his country, and is well known for his zero-tolerance stance on corruption which he says has always been at the centre of its politics in Rwanda.
