By Enyichukwu Enemanna
At least 1,000 Rwandan military personnel, including a former chief of staff, have been retired or sacked in a major reshuffle, the East African army says.
President and army commander-in-chief Paul Kagame “approved the retirement” of General Jean Bosco Kazura as well as 1,162 military of various ranks, the Army said in a statement on Friday.
Kazura, 62, served as Rwanda’s Chief of Defence Staff from 2019 to 2023, and was previously a military advisor to Kagame.
He also led the United Nations mission in Mali, known as MINUSMA, in 2013 and 2014.
Other senior servicemen approved for retirement include brigadier generals John Bagabo, John Bosco Rutikanga, Johnson Hodari and Firmin Bayingana.
The changes, which are frequent in Rwanda, come after Kagame met with high-ranking military leaders to “discuss the peace and security priorities of Rwanda”, a military source told AFP.
The President accused multiple generals in attendance of “lack of discipline”, the source added.
The Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) on Friday laid off 21 senior officers, including division general Martin Nzaramba.
Nzaramba, 57, was “dismissed for corruption and misappropriation of funds intended for the welfare of soldiers during his time as Director of the Basic Military Training Center”, RDF spokesman brigadier general Ronald Rwivanga told online media Igihe.
The Rwandan President in June 2023 dismissed several high-ranking officers over “lack of discipline”, after replacing the defence minister, army chief of staff and land forces chief of staff.
Heritage Times HT reports that the major reshuffle comes amidst allegation by the DRC that the Rwandan military is providing support to the M23 armed group accused of mass killing in the eastern region of DRC.
The Félix Tshisekedi government has threatened a legal suit against the neighbouring Kigali, accusing it of violating its sovereignty.
