Practicing witchcraft is primitive, President Paul Kagame said while pointing at football teams’ officials who recklessly spend money on witchcraft instead of using it to buy essential equipment and investing in their teams for productivity.

He was speaking, on August 23, during the 10-year anniversary of Youth Connekt – a platform that links the youth with their leaders, role models, skills and resources to promote employability, access to finance, civic engagement and entrepreneurship opportunities.

The forum attended by more than 2,000 youths from different parts of the country, saw Kagame talk about a number of issues of concern that face young people in different sectors, and challenged them to change certain lifestyles that hinder them from development.

“Witchcraft is primitive. You should not accept it. If they go in competitions with only this in mind, that’s why they always come back with failure. You must only be absolutely foolish because if you tried something so many times and it doesn’t work, why do you keep repeating it and make it a habit?” he noted.

On July 4, the Head of State tasked officials in charge of football in the country to tackle issues surrounding the game, which include; witchcraft, unprofessionalism, and bribery, and hinted that failure to solve problems in the sports sector will warrant his involvement.

This is when he was questioned about the country’s investment in the sports sector and the perceived lack of results from the national teams despite significant investments.

He said that detrimental actions such as witchcraft, bribery, and conflicts with referees divert attention from the development of sports and impede the country’s progress.

“With these actions, sports can go nowhere. These are things that have to stop in the first place,” he emphasised, vowing to dedicate his time and efforts to resolving these issues, similar to his approach in other sectors.

The President stressed that sports is a national endeavour that impacts the lives of all citizens.