The demand for an independent inquiry into this ‘mysterious’ motor accident generated a lot of praise for the Rwigara family from many Rwandans , especially because they were seen to have done the unthinkable; demand accountability from Paul Kagame himself, a man who it is widely believed ordered the death of Assinapol Rwigara. I took saluted their courage but I also took time to study the evidence before me:
These are what can be established as plausible facts about the so called accident and I welcome anyone who has evidence that would prove what I have written here wrong.
Mr Assinapol Rwigara died in an alleged accident on the evening of February 4th 2015, on the road between Utexirwa and K – Club, in Gacuriro.
The late Rwigara’s car was hit while on an uphill course and came to rest on the left side of the road relative to the driver. There are many land marks that can be used as evidence in the available photo images to determine the final rest position and direction of Rwigara’s car as well as determination of what might have happened.
When the axis of the direction of the road at the said accident spot is considered, the final resting point of Rwigara’s car was also almost the point of impact of the crash. Yet it was hit by a truck moving down hill, several tones heavier and in the same lane as Rwigara’s car. The car only moved a few meters backwards from the contact point and a few meters off the road.
This conclusion is arrived at after analyzing the Photo images which show that the debris of impact (window glasses and the under the car mud), is at the same point as the damage of the lighting pole as well as debris in the drainage channel.
When the damage to both vehicles is considered, it’s only minimal. There are no skid marks or tyre marks on the road. There is neither oil or gasoline spill, nor car body parts. The truck which is clearly in its appropriate lane, did not attempt any evasive maneuver as evidenced by the direction of the tyres, instead in its final rest position, it exhibits an offensive posture towards Rwigara’s car. If the truck had been out of control, its weight alone would have pushed Rwigara’s car off the road completely and inflicted more damage to the car, the road, side walk, drainage channel and embankment.
Many people have commented on the fact that it’s the passenger side of the car that was knocked. The reason as to why Rwigara’s car ended up on the left side of the road in the first place was not given due attention, when there is no evidence on the road to show how it might have got there. It was supposed to be going uphill in the direction of K-Club on the right side of the road adjacent to the valley.
From the photo images, the first contact with the two vehicles happened on the left of the lane designated for the truck which was moving downhill. This contact did not even take place in the middle of the lane as evidenced by the glass debris.
There is no sign that Rwigara’s car attempted any maneuvers because of the absence of skid marks and absence of evidence of a sharp change of direction relative to the general direction of the road.
The impact was light as evidenced by minimal damage to vehicles and the road, as well as minimal displacement and lack of debris that contains car parts other than window glass.
For a head-on collision to be avoided when Rwigara’s car and the truck were both on the same side of the lane is not only miraculous but impossible. However, for the resultant crash to be minimal and fetal at the same time is beyond reasonable imagination both in mechanical physics and traumatology.
There is one explanation as to why the truck hit the passenger side: Rwigara’s car was on the side of the road with a water channel; on the sidewalk of the lane designated to the truck as it moved downhill. This is also the side that is away from the golf course down the valley.
There is also one reason why the point of contact of both vehicles finds Rwigara’s car on the sidewalk adjacent to the downhill-ward lane, which Rwigara was not supposed to be using, later on use for parking. That reason is that Rwigara’s car was most likely deliberately parked there for a controlled crash.
The only plausible explanation for this is that parking on the opposite side would have exposed the car to roll down the valley if the truck had hit it from that position. The driver also would not be sure enough as to avoid the downhill roll himself.
However, in these calculations, someone forgot that their ‘target’ would not only end up on the wrong side of the road in a country where cars ride on the right, but also the truck would literally miss him. That is why we have the truck hitting the non-existent passenger instead. He also forgot to switch off Rwigara’s headlights or rearrange the crash debris or other evidences without which one would never arrive at the above conclusions.
Finally, a senior police officer was quoted in the press to have said that Assinapol Rwigara died as he was being moved out of the car! How on earth does a police officer determine the time of death of a casualty? The first priority by the police or fire department at the scene of a traffic accident is medical, yet we are told, their first priority was to remove the car from the scene, why? Why does a first responder unit in an urban setting move with body bags instead of resuscitation equipment? What about the truck driver? Where and who is he? One could likely find a thousand more questions in this scenario.
Paul Kagame in response to a question in an interview about the death of Mr. Assinapol Rwigara and Dr. Gasakure suggested that people who accuse him of being responsible for their death have thinking that there are no natural deaths in Rwanda, however, these men DID NOT die naturally! One was shot; another’s head was crushed to death. If that is what Mr Paul Kagame calls natural death, God save us!
Therefore, I fully support Rwigara’s family in the quest for an independent and exhaustive inquiry in the supposed accident that killed their father and husband who happened to have been a notable citizen of Rwanda.
Eugene Nzigiye
