This communiqué, supposedly from the Office of the Prime Minister of Rwanda pledging to give more information on the killing of former minister of D.R Congo, Cherubin Okende is FAKE.
The purported statement dated July 14, 2023 was allegedly done on behalf of Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
The release noted that the Rwandan government regretted to learn of the death of Okende who resigned last December from his post as Minister of Transport.
“The government of Rwanda promises to shed light on this file thanks to its surveillance satellite which covers all of Central Africa,” read part of the statement.
It went ahead to say “In the meantime, Rwanda offers its condolences to its biological and political family”.
However, the spokesperson of the Rwandan government Yolande Makolo in a tweet termed the communiqué as FAKE and urged the public to ignore it.
According to a story published by The Associated Press, the Body of Okende who had joined Together for the Republic party, was found in his car on one of the roads in Kinshasa on July 13 2023.
The opposition party stated that Okende’s body which was found a day after he was reported missing was riddled with bullets.
Relevant authorities in D.R Congo are investigating the matter even as the circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear.
This fact check was published by The Star with support from Code for Africa’s PesaCheck and African Fact-Checking Alliance.
