31st August, 2023
President Paul Kagame of Rwanda has approved the retirement of 12 top army generals after a coup toppled the sit-tight government of President Ali Bongo of Gabon.
Kagame has spent 29 years as Rwanda’s president and is one of the longest serving president in Africa. He took over power in 1994 after the Rwanda genocide and is still there.
The retirement of the generals came the same day a coup was reported in Gabon where Bongo was overthrown by military junta.
Their retirement was contained in a statement issued by the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) on Wednesday.
The New Times reports that those retired included two four-star generals, James Kabarebe and Fred Ibingira, two three-star generals, Charles Kayonga and Frank Mushyo Kamanzi.
Kabarebe and Kayonga have previously served as Chief of Defence Staff of RDF, while the other two have been service chiefs previously.
Kabarebe, who also once served as the defence minister, is currently the Senior Presidential Advisor on Defence and Security, while Kamanzi is currently Rwanda’s Ambassador to Russia.
Also, five Major Generals were affected. They are Martin Nzaramba, Eric Murokore, Augustin Turagara, Charles Karamba and Albert Murasira.
Three Brigadier General are also affected. They are Chris Murari, Didace Ndahiro and Emmanuel Ndahiro.
According to the statement, the President has also approved the retirement of 83 senior officers, six junior officers and 86 senior non-commissioned officer, 678 whose contracts ended and 160 medical discharges.